Sometimes when I'm in a city that has a long history, I like to look at the old buildings and think of what life must have been for those living years, decades and centuries ago in those buildings. Many buildings change purpose and owner over time, so just like people them too have a history. Today I'm going to show you a few old buildings from the city center of Targu Mures, that also have an interesting history.
Most of these buildings were built in Art Nouveau style in the 19th or 20th century. Most of them were nationalized by the communist regime after the second world war and a part of them had been returned to the rightful owners, or their heirs after the communism ended.
This is the art school, the only one in the city and in Mures county. Built towards the end of the 18th century or the beginning of the 19th century, had been functioning as a catholic school till the end of the second world war. Then, along with every building of similar size owned by individuals was nationalized. In 1949 the art school was founded in the building and it is functioning there ever since. The catholic church has been fighting the government to get the property back and I think they have succeeded in the end a couple or a few years ago.
There's a cross on the top of the building as it belongs to the catholic church now and there's also a religious scene carved in stone on the facade, below the cross.
This is the oldest two-storey building in Târgu Mureş. It was built in 1554 by Tamás Nagy Köpeczi, the Transylvanian tax collector during the reign of Izabella. Over time, several members of the Transylvanian monarchy stayed here and successive owners have been doing some renovation works on the building.
In 1808, the property fell into the hands of Count József Teleki, who set up his library here, set up the city's first museum, collection of natural history and minerals and a collection of physical tools, which later were left to the Reformed College.
From 1845 the Lord's Casino operated here and large dance parties were held here during the carnival season. source
The gate itself is a work of art and I'm glad it is still in its original form. There are some offices functioning at the first floor at the moment, which I did not know about at the time of my visit, but next time I'll be around, I'm going to have a look around as the interior must be interesting as well. So I may be back with photos about the interior one day.
The name of the house is a strange one even in Hungarian. Translated to English would be the house with legs.
The house, which was built to protect passers-by from the rain, already existed in the 15th century. In the XVIII. It was a residential house at the beginning of the 16th century, and because it stood next to the Catholic school, it was purchased by the Catholic Church in 1732 for the purpose of expanding the school. Between 1787 and 1792 a barracks operated here, then again a school, until 1905. In 1873 a fire broke out in which the roof and some upstairs rooms burned down. It was renovated in 1874 and another floor was built over it. Due to the architectural excesses of the 20th century, the stability of the building was shaken. In 1983-84, the building was restored to its original form due to restoration work. source
Most of the spaces at the ground floor are rented by businesses, there's a radio station there as well. I don't know what it is at the upper floors, maybe homes?
Those arched entrances look very interesting and most likely unique as I haven't seen similar architecture in the city center. The reason behind the arched entrances is also interesting. Back in those days architects were thinking of pedestrians too, to be able to find shelter if it start raining. Nowadays it doesn't matter as most of the bus stations are in the open air, don't even have a covered area.
The former Greek house was built in the 16th century and rebuilt in the early 18th century. The building has been through a lot. Famous personalities took part at the balls organized here. In 1849, Sándor Petőfi, an officer of General Bem, lived here and went to the battlefield from here. So here was the last time he was seen alive. In 1848-49 the city council held meetings here. In 1852, Emperor Franz Joseph stopped here. In 1868 one of the banks moved in and after the nationalization the House of Armies has been functioning here. source
The name of the building most likely comes from its previous owner, or the person who built it, but couldn't find any reference to that. There's been a restaurant in the basement for decades, which has been the most famous and expensive one for years. Then there has been a pizza bar and now I have no idea what it is down there, if there's any business operating there at all. The upper levels are occupied by the army offices, so no chance to visit those unless you have a good reason.
The memorial plate commemorating Sándor Petőfi's staying is still on the front wall. Sándor Petőfi is a famous Hungarian poet. He is the author of the Nemzeti dal (National Song), which is said to have inspired the revolution in the Kingdom of Hungary that grew into a war for independence from the Austrian Empire.
The house was built in 1824 by the Petráskó family. In the middle of the 19th century, the Gajzágó family bought the house and named it after their daughter, Mrs Kárnász. The walls of the building are richly decorated. The pictures depict street details of the former city. From the ceiling of the upstairs hallway, portraits of ladies and ladies perched on clouds look down on us.
After the nationalization, some of the rooms were painted and rented out. In 1986, when the renovation of the building began, nine coats of paint had to be removed, up to the original paintings. The local council set up a marriage hall in the building. source
Unfortunately the nationalization has done a lot of damage to both the ex owners and these buildings as well. The number of nationalized properties all over the country was extremely high and the state had no funds to maintain the buildings in good shape. Most of them have been repurposed and those who got the privilege to move in, had no intention to maintain the value and the good condition of the buildings. Not to mention how many of the buildings have been demolished over the years, partly to delete the old history and partly to give room to the new projects.
The inside of the building is spectacular, no coincidence that it was made a marriage hall. In the recent years the a marriage hall has been moved to another location, due to lack of space and also lack of parking space.
The Faigenbaum family's house had an Art Nouveau façade for some time and was home to the police. The building was built between 1906-07 according to the plans of architect Béla Keleti. In 1959, the building was renovated, then the facade was stripped of its original ornaments. source
Another impressive Art Nouveau building in the city center of Targu Mures, that has been through a lot during the years. The problem I see in most of the cases is the businesses on the ground floor are ruining the view with their banners. I know they have the right to do so as they are renting the place, but if you look at the big picture, it's not a pleasant view.
There's another impressive building on the left, must be from the same era, but I couldn't find anything related to its history. If you look at the architecture of the building, it must have been built by some nobles as it's not an everyday architecture.
The richly decorated eclectic Baroque palace, also known as the Bányai House, was built by the butcher Béla Bányai between 1904 and 1907, according to the plans of engineer Győző Nagy. Mayor György Bernády lived on the first floor of the house between 1936-37 and the famous Édeslyuk restaurant was in the courtyard. source
Even though this Baroque style may not be so popular today, I love it. If I were to build a house from scratch today, may not choose Baroque style, but as a historical building, I find it absolutely amazing. Obviously it would need some renovation work, which may or may not happen in the upcoming future, but otherwise it's lovely. I'm glad it had resisted to the challenges over the years as it has a nice history.
The house of the Toldalagi family was dreamed up in the Baroque style by designer Jean Luidor and was built between 1759-1772. The park behind the palace, with its geometric shapes and fountains, reflects the features of the French Baroque style. Rococo influences can also be noticed on the building. Over the years, the palace had several uses: a printing press in 1786, a bank in 1920 and after the building was restored in 1960, the historical section of the County Museum moved here. From 1984, the ethnography department took over. source
I had the pleasure to visit the palace in November last year, or the exhibition inside, to be precise and fell in love with it immediately. It has an interior courtyard, covered by a glass top, which gives the whole palace plenty of light. I had to post this photo as at the time of my visit the whole building was under renovation, I mean the outer part, therefore fully covered.
I'm not sure how comfortable it would be to live in a palace like this, or what the utility bills would look like during winter, but I'm in love with this house. The museum is absolutely fantastic too, worth visiting if you're in the area.
This is the back of the palace. I love the door, the windows and the yellow paint combined with the white is just perfectly matching the brown wood.
Back in the day when these buildings were built, traffic in the city was negligible or non existent. There were carriages used by the rich but as this was the city center, not many were passing. Today the heavy traffic makes life in these buildings hard to enjoy. There are mostly offices here these days, unlike back in the day when these buildings were homes.
