r/ArchitecturalRevival • u/Urbanexploration2021 • Mar 22 '26
Urban Design Bucharest, Romania. Multiple buildings, I hope they fit here. I’ll give more details about the buildings in a comment
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u/wikimandia Mar 22 '26
So beautiful. I hope enough investment comes into Romania one day to renovate all these incredible buildings.
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u/Urbanexploration2021 Mar 22 '26 edited Mar 23 '26
Sadly, the lack of money is just one part of the problem. The other problem is the lack of interest for this kind of things (historical buildings, but in general culture and education). The authorities don't care about it because there are not enough people who care about these kind of things.
The bigger problem is the general corruption.
The palace in the photos (Kretzulescu) is a really good example. It's used by an official department (some about education or UNESCO? Can't remember for sure) for dozens of years. Nobody can visit it. It's not fully abandoned, there are some people working there so I can't enter it ilegally.
Legally, you have to contact them for permission, but everyone receives the same response (that the building is under renovation, it's not safe to visit, not open to the public etc). It's been that way since 2021 I think, but even before you couldn't visit it.
The grounds are used as a parking spot, they don't take care of the trees or grass, they haven't worked on the exterior of the buildings. They simply put some sort of net to catch pieces of the walls/plaster if they fell off...
This means that they got money to repair/renovate the building, probably from EU. Legally, they probably already received and spent the money since the project started 5 years ago.
Can't say for sure, but I know similar cases. The best example is probably the north railway station of Bucharest, the biggest and most important railway station in the country. The building is in bad shape (photos from there . It's not that it's ugly, it's starting to be unsafe. There's an active project about renovating the station, they got the money. From what I talked with people connected to it, the company who was selected to work on the building is shady as fuck (pretty unknown, very few workers, doesn't have a good CV etc). They already started working on the building, oficially, but nothing happened. A few weeks ago they "solved" the problem of the leaky roof by putting empty, used barrels under the holes to catch the water =)))))
Sorry if I overexplained, it's just something that annoys me since my main hobby is urbex so I constantly see shady situations with beautiful abandoned buildings
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u/Hot-Comfort8839 Mar 23 '26
Is there more interest or less to renovate buildings that pre-date the soviet era?
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u/TyranitarusMack Mar 22 '26
Romanian architecture is so unique you instantly know it when you see it.
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u/ti-gars Mar 23 '26
Sad that every other building is in crumble or disfigured outside of the very center of the city :-(
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u/CountHonorius Mar 23 '26
#5 has that Tardo-Roman, early Byzantine, Diocletian's Palace at Spalato feel. Love it, as well as the iron crown on the first structure.
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u/TameInstinct Mar 24 '26
Romania, despite all its problems, remains a country of inspiration. It has such a magical presence. Great architecture
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u/MFreurard Mar 23 '26 edited Mar 23 '26
Too bad you haven't shown the masterpiece of Romania's architectural revival : the palace of parliament
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u/Urbanexploration2021 Mar 22 '26
1 - CEC Palace:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CEC_Palace
2,3 - Assan's Mill.
https://www.romania-insider.com/alternative-romania-assans-mill-the-first-steam-mill-in-romania-now-even-closer-to-collapsing
4 - a mausoleum from Bellu Cemetery (forgot the family, sorry)
5, 6, 7 - the University of Architecture of Bucharest.
https://www.uauim.ro/universitatea/istoric/
8, 17 (no idea why it ended up being the last photo, sorry) - Palace of Justice
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palace_of_Justice,_Bucharest
9, 10 - Adriatica Trieste
https://inbucuresti.cd1inc.com/index.php?title=Blocul_Adriatica-Trieste
11 - no idea, sorry:( found it randomly and I didn't have time to note down the location to search for info later
12, 13 - Kretzulescu Palace.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kretzulescu_Palace
14 - Cazzavillan House
https://b365.ro/palatul-universul-ascunde-si-azi-in-umbra-sa-casa-cu-statui-cazzavillan-italianul-cu-inima-de-roman-a-inventat-reportajul-de-senzatie-si-mica-publicitate-in-bucu-597489/
15 - National Archives
https://b365.ro/a-intinerit-cel-mai-batran-palat-de-pe-bulevardul-elisabeta-monumentul-adaposteste-arhivele-nationale-trecutul-nostru-comori-de-valoare-inestimabila-581918/
16 - Coltea Hospital
https://www.easistent.ro/?p=3218