Urmanczy Castle in Toplița, Harghita

A beautiful ruin, I hope, in recovery

Where is it and when to visit?

In Toplita, Harghita county, not far from the banks of the Mures river, on the Heroes street, at number 26, you can visit on request or by chance, in our case, Urmanczy Castle. In case you find closed you can call a posted phone number or av adresati la Centrul Info Turistic Toplita and instead of a non-receiving lacat you can even benefit from a guided tour.

About Urmanczy Castle

Urmanczy Castle in Toplita was built in 1903-1906 by Jeromos Urmanczy, an Armenian nobleman. Surprising, isn't it? The project was realized by the Tyrolean Italian architect Vigilio Giacomuzzi. The architectural style is Secessionist modern (Art Nouveau), and it is unique in Transylvania. It is categorized as historical monument. After the 1950's the castle had other uses: hospital annexes, ethnographic museum, base of the ensemble "Caliman Rhapsody".

1. Castle outside

The residential complex consists of a public park, a kennel, a manager's house and a pump house, so it says in the information materials. All we saw was an imposing castle in an unkempt courtyard, with grass and lots of dogs, in a dilapidated state. In the distance we saw Water Tower.

Urmanczy Castle

2. Ground floor

The spaces inside are large. We walk on old, but in good condition. The walls are discolored and cracked. The windows have old wooden touches that are damaged.

walls

old windows

3. Floor

A staircase leads us upstairs where we seem to hear the sound of a piano. Upstairs, the spaces are no longer empty. There is some furniture, clothing and paintings, but they are rather chaotic and tasteless. We enjoyed snooping through the wardrobe. We discovered that some rooms upstairs were also empty. In a secluded space, a piano was sitting on the floor without legs. That was where the sounds we had heard earlier had come from.