Less known facts about Ljubljana

During all this time learning about Ljubljana and its history, i came across different facts, interesting, different or funny that I will gather under this blog:

• The first car ever drove on the streets of Ljubljana was a Benz Comfortable, on 15 November 1898 and fast got the name of “red bull” because of its speed,  up till 19 kilometers per hour. or “Teufelswagen” – car of the devil.  Remaining at transports, the first train between Ljubljana and Trieste took 3 days.
• The Jesuits that came to Ljubljana in 1597, are  introducing the theater to the cultural life.
•  The ship that was bringing the marble needed for Robba’s Fountain, coming from Venice has sunk on its way, so just the figures were carved in marble, while for the rest it was used stone brought from Lesno.

• The Ljubljanska Banka Skyscaper, from our days, is build in the same place  where in the Roman times of Emona, the financier called Fructuosus had his house.
• In the beginning of the twentieth century, the Opera House was such a trendy place to be and be seen, that people used to send postcards from the opera,to friends and family.. Guess this would be the equivalent of today’s facebook check-in?!:)
• In Tivoli Park, next to the Manor you can see a beautiful representation of two dogs that guard the steps up to the manor,that have behind a sad story, the creator of them,Anton Dominik von Fernkorn, took his life,after realizing he forgot to add tongues to his dogs.
• In the middle ages cheating bakers were dunked in Ljubljanica from Cobbler’s Bridge. Cheating on the weight of bread was punished with a very cold bath and public humiliation.
• At the making of The Triple Bridge contribute numerous people from Ljubljana, asked to help by hand polishing the 648 bridge balustrades, made from a mixture of sand and cement.
• The formation of the Kingdom of Serbs,Croats and Slovenes was declared in 1918, from the balcony of that holds today The Ljubljana University, in Kongresni trg.
• Trnovo Bridge is one if the few bridges in the world that has a venue of birch trees.
•  The Urbanc House – Centromerkur in Prešernov trg has on top a statue of Mercury, that has on the left leg the bust of the first owner of the shop.
• The unveiling of the statue of France Prešeren in 1905 caused much public controversy due to the nude muse above the poet’s statue.