Pécs
the multicultural city
Pecs has allways been a multicultural city which its architecture shows. Christianity came here arround 270, which is really early for the region. Since there have been muslims and jews helping shaping the city. Therefor the city is to be found on the UNESCO world Heritage list
Early christian Necropolis
In the cemetery of ancient Sopianae, our 4th century Roman forebears built simple churches, chapels and mausoleums with tombs beneath them. In the course of the archaeological excavations that have been going on for more than 200 years, hundreds of graves rich in artefacts have been found around the tombs. On the basis of the Christian symbols decorating the artefacts and the buildngs Biblical frescos, the cemetery of Sopianae is assumed to be an early Christian cemetery. The site has the largest number of frescoed cemetery buildings, not just in Hungary but in the whole of Europe, and for this reason is considered an unrivalled monument of ancient history and the early history of the Church.
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Jakawali Hassan Mosque
Jakovali Hassan Pasha built the mosque in the second half of the 16th century. After the expulsion of the Turks the construction was used from 1702 to 1732 as a chapel devoted to St. John of Nepomuk and then used as a hospital chapel. During the restoration of the 20th century the later additions were removed. Inside there is an art exhibition.
The dome of the mosque rests on an octagonal drum on a massive square building with ogee windows. The finely crafted, decorated with stalactites Portal on the northwest side and the mihrab were restored. During the restoration Kufic Koran quotes and lush vegetation patterns were resurfaced. The 23 meter high minaret was partially completed in the 19th century. |
Mosque of Pasha Qasim
The Candlemas Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Hungarian: Belvárosi Gyertyaszentelő Boldogasszony-templom), formerly known as the Mosque of Pasha Qasim is a Roman Catholic church, which was a mosque in the 16-17th century due to the Ottoman conquest. The current building, hundred steps both its length and its width, was built by Pasha Qasim the Victorious between 1543 and 1546. The mosque was converted into a church in 1702, after the Habsburg-Hungarian troops liberated the city. The minaret was brought down by the Jesuits in 1766.
Standing at the highest point of Pécs's Széchenyi square, the mosque of pasha Qasim is the greatest example of Turkish architecture in Hungary. It was probably built in the second half of the 16th century. In the 1660s Evliya Çelebi, the famous Turkish traveller wrote of the overwhelming majesty of its view. A number of changes had been made on the building between the 18th and the 20th centuries. Only the main square part remained of the original structure: the octagon drum, covered by a dome. There are arc windows in two rows on the façade of its south-eastern, south western and north-eastern part; 3-3 and 4-4 pieces. Inside the church, in the remaining plaster parts the Turkish decoration and inscriptions of the Qur'an are clearly visible. The Turkish pulpit and the women's balcony were destroyed and the mihrab is not the original either. The two Turkish bathing basins before the sacristies (today holy water) are taken from the former bath of the pasha next to the church. |
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National Theatre
Theatrical plays became a regular attraction in the city from the beginning of the 19th century in German and Hungarian language. Most often they were arranged in larger dancing halls, inns, the small stage of Tettye or the Elefánt-house Inn. While being continuously planned from 1815 onwards, the first theatre opened only in 1840 in the Mária street. Demolished in 1890, only a sketch of the facade remained from this building.
To meet the demand for a high-quality structure, the city council set up a committee, led by mayor János Aidinger to coordinate the planning. The design competition of 1890 was won by Adolf Lang and Adolf Steinhardt, who, in cooperation with the renowned Fellner-Helmer duo, and 10 000 Ft granted by the county council, started the construction. The premiere was held on 5 October 1895 with the play Bánk bán. The theatre became nationalized between 1949 and 1989. The chamber theatre was opened, which was transformed to a children's theatre from 1965. After the theatre building's deterioration worsened in the middle of the 1980s, a 5 year long reconstruction started in 1986, equipping the theatre with a modern orchestra pit and new machinery. |
Paleochristian Church
Pecs train station
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The city's richly decorated main railway station was built in 1900, by the architect Ferenc Pfaff. The yellow brick building has decorative elements of pink ceramic throughout the building. The richest ornament of the middle front part is showing a circular red granite reliefs, which are based on Klein Armin plans made in the Zsolnay factory.
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Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral
The foundations of today's Church of the Cathedral of Pécs are from the late Roman era. They date back to the late 4th century. It is believed that an early Christian basilica was here, which was extended to the west in the 8th and 9th centuries. Currently King Stephen I the Holy, the original church became a crypt and he made the building predating the present cathedral. Presumably, the two western towers also date from this period. With the construction of the Romanesque basilicthat was begun after the great fire of 1064 involving architects from northern Italy. In the Middle Ages the church was extended by two towers and the Gothic chapels. After damage or deterioration during 1543-1686 under the Turkish rule there were reconstruction in various styles. In 1807 the church was rebuilt in the Classitic style, designed by the architect Mihály Pollack. On the facade of the Twelve Apostles figures of Mihály Bartalits were attached.
Today's neo-Romanesque shape of the dome was made 1882-1891 according to the plans of the Viennese cathedral architect Friedrich von Schmidt in connection with the so-called Millennium of the Magyar Conquest, which was celebrated in 1896 with great festivities. Authority of the ambitious project was bishop Nándor Dulánszky, it was financed among others by the income of the diocese belonging coal mines in the Mecsek Mountains. The plan was to build the "original" cathedral from the age of Árpád again. The length of the church is 70 meters, width 22 meters, the height of the towers 60 meters. |
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synagogue
The Synagogue of Pécs was consecrated in 1869 by the Jewish Neolog community, whose principles are of a more reformed Judaism. Designed by architects Frigyes Feszl, Károly Gerster, and Lipót Kauser, the synagogue’s face is embellished with a clock and a Hebrew inscription that reads, "For my house, be called to the house of prayer for all peoples." The building also boasts onion domes and other ornate exterior finishes; its seating is of the same dark slavonian oak as was used when it was built. Decorative detailing includes brilliantly colored ceilings displaying intricate stencil work, cast and wrought-iron columns with gilded capitals, and stylized architectural features. The synagogue still contains its original Angster organ.
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Széchenyi square
Széchenyi square is the main square in the historical centre of Pécs, Hungary. In the Middle Ages it served as the market place of the town with the city hall and the parish church. Before the square was named Széchenyi in 1864 it had had several other names like Fórum, Városi piacz (City piazza), Főtér (Main square). The square is one of the central squares of Pécs, full of monuments, mounting gradually northward. Twelve streets fall into the square spoke-wise. Its main attractions are the Mosque of Pasha Qasim, the City Hall, the County Hall, the Nádor hotel, the Zsolnay well, the Fatebenefratelli Church, the Trinity statue and the brass statue of János Hunyadi on horse back. The surface of the square was rebuilt within the scope of the project Pécs2010 European Cultural Capital. Within the annual Pécs days festival, the festival of wine and grape is held on the square. It is celebrated fairs and vintage carnivals wine tasting of the famous wine regions of Pécs and Villány. The Christmas tree of the town is set on Széchenyi square.
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town hall
A dominant building of the lower Széchenyi square is the town hall. At the point of the corner building in 1695 was a vacant lot that was chosen for the construction of the town hall. The first town hall after the Turkish occupation was built in 1698 in Baroque style and had only one floor. From the balcony of this building was announced on April 19 of the year 1780 that the city was named a free royal city. 158 wounded soldiers, during the Napoleonic wars in 1809, used the City Hall as a hospital. A local architect, József Piatsek expanded 1830-1834 the building to a two-story building, designed in the classical style. Already on 15 April 1834 the first general meeting was held in the new building. 1871 the town hall got a clock tower. 1895 the General Assembly had decided to build a new building. The opportunity to realize these plans Adolf Lang had won. The present neo-baroque, eclectic building opened in 1907. For an unique atmosphere of the city the bells of the Town Hall tower contributes, which can be heard every hour on the Széchenyi square. At the top of the tower, the crest of the act of the free royal city of Pécs can be seen, which was donated by Maria Theresa and her son Joseph II, together with the free city rights in 1780 the city.
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