UNESCO World Heritage Sites

Medieval towns, fortified churches, painted monasteries, wooden masterpieces and ancient Dacian ruins are just some of the attractions that make up Romania's exceptional cultural heritage.

25 of its beautifully preserved architectural gems have been included by UNESCO in the World Cultural Heritage in acknowledgement of their natural, scenic and monumental appeal. A tour of these sites is a good way to discover Romania's history, artistic wealth and popular traditions. Each and every stop on this route will reveal a unique and stunning location.

The western half of Walachia (Southern Romania) is endowed with spectacular monasteries, thermal-spring spas, and charming villages set at the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains. Continue your trip along the Olt River Valley and discover Transylvania's forest-covered slopes, unspoiled landscapes, quaint villages, and fortified churches. In northeastern Romania, make time for Bucovina's painted monasteries, with their magnificent 15th-century frescoes, which are unique in the world. Cross the Prislop Pass into Maramures, famous for its hand-hewn wooden architecture and its unique tall-spire churches with double roofs.

Romania's UNESCO World Heritage Sites:
Hurezi Monastery (Monastery Horezu)
Medieval fortified churches of Transylvania
Historic centre of Sighisoara - Sighisoara Citadel
Painted Monasteries of Bucovina
Sculptor Constantin Brâncuși Monumental Ensemble – town of Târgu Jiu
Wooden Churches of Maramures
Sarmisegetusa Regia capital of the Dacian Kingdom in the Orastie Mountains
Roșia Montană, historical mining area
The Roman Empire Borders of Dacia

...

Monastery Hurezi

Manastirea Hurezi
Location: Walachia region – Southern Romania
Nearby large town: Ramnicu Valcea (27 miles east)
Nearest train station: Ramnicu Valcea
Telephone: (+4) 0250 860.071

Founded in 1690 by Prince Constantin Brancoveanu, the monastery of Horezu is one of the most representative Romanian Renaissance style (Brâncovan or Brâncovenesc style) structure.
Renown for the richness of its sculptural detail, the treatment of its religious compositions and its painted decorative works, the monastery houses precious collections of frescos and icons dating from the end of the 17th century and beginning of the 18th century.

Hurezi School of mural and icon painting established at the monastery in the 18th century had a profound influence on religious art and architecture in the Balkan region.

The monastery museum, housed in the princely residence, features masterpieces of Brâncovan style icons, books, embroideries, silver collections. The library contains over 4,000 volumes including Homer’s Odyseea (printed in 1541), Euripide’s Tragedies (printed in 1551) and Novellae Constitutiones - one of the four major units of Roman law initiated by Roman emperor Justinian I (printed in Paris in 1568).

Monastery of Horezu was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List " for its architectural purity and balance, the richness of its sculptural detail, the treatment of its religious compositions,
its votive portraits and its painted decorative works".

Overnight accommodations - for up to 20 people - are available at the monastery
(rooms with two, three and four beds).

The first bobsled ever made in Romania was manufactured at Horezu School of Craftmanship
for Romania's, 1924 Chamonix Olympics, four-man bobsled team.
The bobsled is today on ehxibit at the Valcea county Village Museum in Bujoreni (Muzeul Satului Vâlcean)
(32 miles east of Horezu / 4 miles north of Râmnicu Vâlcea).

...

The Medieval Fortified Churches of Transylvania

Transylvania is home to nearly two hundred villages with fortified churches built by the Saxons between the 13th and 15th centuries. Having to withstand constant invaders, the villages' central areas, where the church was located most of the time, were fortified with defense walls, having the capacity to shelter a large number of people. Seven of the fortified churches have been designated by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. A visit to these quaint villages, placed amidst lush farmland and green rolling hills, will give travelers a taste of the long-gone medieval times.

Biertan Fortified Church

Location: Transylvania – Central Romania
Nearby large town: Sighisoara (18 miles east)
Nearest train station: Dumbraveni
More info on Biertan Fortified Church

Calnic Fortified Church

Location: Transylvania – Central Romania
Nearby large town: Sibiu (30 miles southeast)
Nearest train station: Miercurea Sibiului
More info on Calnic Fortified Church

Darjiu Fortified Church

Location: Transylvania – Central Romania
Nearby large town: Sighisoara (20 miles west)
Nearest train stations: Saschiz, Sighisoara
More info on Darjiu Fortified Church

Prejmer Fortified Church

Location: Transylvania – Central Romania
Nearby large towns: Brasov (11 miles southwest)
Nearest train station: Prejmer
More info on Prejmer Fortified Church

Saschiz Fortified Church

Location: Transylvania – Central Romania
Nearby large town: Sighisoara (10 miles west)
Nearest train station: Saschiz
More info on Saschiz Fortified Church

Valea Viilor Fortified Church

Location: Transylvania – Central Romania
Nearby large town: Medias (8.5 miles northwest)
Nearest train station: Copsa Mica
More info on Valea Viilor Fortified Church

Viscri Fortified Church

Location: Transylvania – Central Romania
Nearby large town: Sighisoara (25 miles northwest)
Nearest train station: Rupea
More info on Viscri Fortified Church

...

Sighisoara Citadel

Location: Transylvania region - Central Romania
Nearest train station: Sighisoara
More info on Sighisoara Old Town

Founded by German craftsmen and merchants known as the Saxons of Transylvania, Sighisoara is a fine example of a small, fortified medieval town which played an important strategic and commercial role on the fringes of central Europe for several centuries.

Sighisoara, one of the most beautiful towns in the heart of Transylvania, looks today much as it did 500 years ago. This medieval town was also the birthplace of Vlad Dracula - nicknamed Vlad Tepes (Vlad the Impaler) - ruler of Walachia from 1456 to 1462. It was he who inspired Bram Stoker's fictional creation,Count Dracula. His house is just one of the many attractions here. Others include the Church on the Hill, with its 500–year old frescos; the Church of the Dominican Monastery, renown for its Renaissance carved altarpiece, baroque painted pulpit, Oriental carpets and 17th-century organ; and the Venetian House, built in the 13th century.

Among the most striking attractions is the 210-feet high Clock Tower (The Council Tower), built in the 14th century, where each day a different wooden figure emerges from the belfry on the stroke of midnight. The tower was raised in the 13th and 14th centuries when Sighisoara became a free town controlled by craft guilds, each of which had to finance the construction of a bastion and defend it during wartime. The fortification walls, built in the 14th and 15th centuries, were up to 50-feet high and featured 14 defense towers. Most of the old structure and 9 of the defense towers can still be admired today… (more information)

...

The Painted Monasteries of Bucovina

Among the most picturesque treasures of Romania are the Painted Churches of Bucovina (northeastern Romania). With their painted exterior walls, decorated with 15th and 16th century elaborate frescoes (featuring portraits of saints and prophets, scenes from the life of Jesus, images of angels and demons, heaven and hell), deemed as masterpieces of Byzantine art, these churches are one-of-a-kind architectural sites in Europe. Far from being merely wall decorations, the paintings represent complete cycles of religious murals. The purpose of the frescoes was to make the story of the Bible and the lives of the most important orthodox saints known to the villagers, by the use of images. Their outstanding composition, elegant outline and harmonious colors blend perfectly with the surrounding landscape. Whether you are interested in religion, history, art or architecture, you will be intrigued by the construction and decor - exterior and interior - of these edifices. The best preserved are monasteries Humor,   Moldovita,   Patrauti,   Probota,   Suceava,   Sucevita   and   Voronet. Another, a small - unique - church, is located in the village of Arbore. Eight of the churches were placed on UNESCO's Word Heritage list in 1993.

Arbore Church

Location: Bucovina – Northeastern Romania
Nearby large town: Suceava (20 miles southeast)
Access: car, bus (from Gura Humorului or Radauti)
Nearest train stations: Darmanesti, Radauti
More info on Monastery Arbore

Humor Monastery

Location: Bucovina – Northeastern Romania
Nearby large town: Suceava (25 miles east)
Access: car, bus (from Suceva), train
Nearest train stations: Gura Humorului
More info on Monastery Humor

Moldovita Monastery

Location: Bucovina – Northeastern Romania
Nearby large town: Suceava (55 miles southeast)
Access: car, train (from Suceava to Vama, 1 ¼ hours, and from Vama to Vatra Moldovitei, 35min)
Nearest train stations: Vatra Moldovitei
More info on Monastery Moldovita

Patrauti Church

Location: Bucovina – Northeastern Romania
Nearby large town: Suceava (5 miles southeast)
Access: car, bus from Suceava
Nearest train stations: Darmanesti, Suceava
More info on Monastery Patrauti

Probota Monastery

Location: Bucovina – Northeastern Romania
Nearby large town: Suceava (31 miles northwest)
Access: car
Nearest train stations: Dolhasca
More info on Monastery Probota

Saint George's Church / Saint John the New Monastery

(Biserica Sfantul Gheorghe / Manastirea Sfantul Ioan cel Nou)
Location: Suceava – Northeastern Romania
Address: Str. Ioan Voda Viteazul 2
Nearest train stations: Suceava
More info on Monastery StGeorge

Voronet Monastery

Location: Bucovina – Northeastern Romania
Nearby large town: Suceava (20 miles east)
Access: car, bus (from Gura Humorului), 3 ½-mile walk from Gura Humorului
Nearest train stations: Gura Humorului
More info on Monastery Voronet

...

Sculptor Constantin Brâncuși Monumental Ensemble – town of Târgu Jiu

Considered the most notable examples of 20th-century public art, the three-sculpture ensemble - by Romanian modernist master Constantin Brancusi - was created in the late 1930s in town of Targu Jiu, southwestern Romania.

Austere and contemplative, the monumental ensemble represents a tribute to the fallen First World War soldiers.
But the remarkable fusion of abstract sculpture, landscape architecture, engineering, and urban planning, conceived by artist Constantin Brâncuși, goes far beyond the local wartime episode to offer an original vision of the human condition. His vision was to shape a central esplanade linking three great sculptures depicting the pilgrimage of life: ''The Table of Silence,'' symbolizing divinity and communion; ''The Gate of the Kiss,'' embodying love; and ''The Endless Column, a paean to Herculean triumph and an axis for the universe.

Brancusi’s „Endless Column” - seventeen brass-clad cast-iron rhomboids stacked in a hundred-foot-high pillar - is considered a Modernist Icon, a major example of modernist art for the way it distilled objects to their basics, representing them through abstraction.
The Table of Silence, is a minimalist travertine table surrounded by a dozen stools / backless chairs, of the same material.
The Gate of the Kiss, a limstone/ travertine gate bears an original kiss motif.

...

The Wooden Churches of Maramures

There is a strong tradition of building wooden churches across Eastern Europe, from Karelia and northern Russia all the way to the Adriatic, but in terms of both quality and quantity the richest examples are in Maramures. The Wooden Churches of Maramures are unique in shape and ornamentation and eight of them – in Barsana, Budesti Josani, Desesti, Ieud, Plopis, Poienile Izei, Rogoz and Surdesti, have been recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites.

The characteristic high roofs and tall, narrow, pointed steeples are often collectively described as the Gothic Style of Maramures. The primary wood material used by the artisans was local oak, which has survived the elements with sturdy elegance until today. The interior walls of the churches were painted by local artists, with biblical scenes often juxtaposed against the familiar landscape of the village. Most of these houses of worship have stood proudly since the 17th and 18th centuries – some even longer. The oldest wooden church in Maramures is the Church on the Hill in Ieud, which dates from 1364.

Barsana — Church of 'Entry of the Most Holy Mother of God into Temple'

Biserica Intrarea Maicii Domnului in Biserica
Location: Iza Valley, Maramures – Northern Romania
Nearby large town: Sighetu Marmatiei (10 miles northwest)
Nearest train station: Sighetu Marmatiei

Built in 1720, the wooden church in the village of Barsana (tracing its name to barsani, the local shepherds who breed long-haired sheep) features some impressive interior frescoes with baroque and rococo influences painted by Toader Hodor in 1806. Originally part of a monastic complex closed down in 1791, the church was moved to its present location at the beginning of the 19th century. This outstanding church boasts an impressive collection of icons painted on glass and old religious books now on display in the museum of the new Barsana Monastery.

Budesti Josani Village - Church of Saint Nicholas

(Biserica Sfantul Nicolae)
Location: Maramures – Northern Romania
Nearby large town: Sighetu Marmatiei (20 miles north)
Nearest train station: Sighetu Marmatiei

Laid out the foothills around the Cosau Valley, the beautiful church in Budesti Josani (1643) is home to a valuable collection of icons painted on glass depicting folkloric scenes; the church also houses a unique collection of 15th century wooden icons painted on both sides. The outstanding Last Judgment fresco, painted by Alexandru Ponehalski in the 1760s, has been preserved in its entirety. The influence of the Western Gothic style can be seen in the arrangement of the main belfry, which is surrounded by four smaller turrets. The coat of mail and helmet of Pintea the Brave (1670 - 1703) - a local outlaw who fought against social injustice - can be seen in Budesti Monastery.

Desesti – Saint Parascheva Church

(Biserica Sfanta Cuvioasa Paraschiva)
Location: Maramures – Northern Romania
Nearby large town: Sighetu Marmatiei (15 miles north)
Nearest train station: Sighetu Marmatiei

The beautiful wooden church with a tall spire and steep, low-reaching,
double-skirted roof in Desesti was built in 1770 in traditional Maramures style
and painted by the renowned post-Byzantine fresco painters Radu Munteanu and Grigore Zugravu.
Of significant interest are the Genesis, depicting the creation of Adam and Eve, and the Last Judgment scenes.

Ieud - Church of Birth of the Most Holy Mother of God

(Biserica Nasterea Maicii Domnului)
Location: Maramures – Northern Romania
Nearby large town: Sighetu Marmatiei (30 miles northwest)
Nearest train stations: Viseu de Jos or Salistea de Sus

Built in 1364, the Church on the Hill is the oldest church in Maramures. Built of pine and fir with small windows, a double roof and a single, impressive steeple, it features 15th century primitive Byzantine-style murals. Fourteen icons, illustrating moments from the Judgment to the Crucifixion biblical scenes are placed along the path leading up to the church to recall The Way to the Cross that Jesus Christ walked to Golgotha.

Plopis - Church of Archangels Michael and Gabriel

(Biserica Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil)
Location: Maramures – Northern Romania
Nearby large town: Baia Mare (12 miles northwest)
Nearest train station: Baia Mare

Built between 1796-1798 and painted in 1811, this church's construction combines architectural elements from both the Maramures and Transylvania regions. High walls endowed with two rows of windows increase interior illumination and add to the distinctive style of the church, the only one in Maramures with a three-vaulted roof.

Poienile Izei - Saint Parascheva Church

(Biserica Sfanta Cuvioasa Paraschiva)
Location: Maramures – Northern Romania
Nearby large town: Sighetu Marmatiei (23 miles northwest)
Nearest train station: Viseu de Jos or Salistea de Sus

The church at Poienile Izie, built on fir logs between 1604 and 1632, is one of the most beautiful and best-preserved architectural monuments in Maramures. The church's interior frescoes, painted in 1794 by Gheorghe din Dragomiresti, feature some of the most dramatic depictions of hell, illustrated in the Last Judgement scene. An interesting element is the metal horned moon under the cross, considered a means of protection against the Tartars.

Rogoz - Church of Archangels Michael and Gabriel

(Biserica Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavriil)
Location: Maramures – Northern Romania
Nearby large town: Baia Mare (27 miles northwest)
Nearest train station: Baia Mare

Built in 1663 and painted in 1785, the wooden church in Rogoz features an asymmetrical roof with the northern side larger and lowered to protect the people standing outside during important religious celebrations.
The overhanging roof protects the stylized horse-head carvings, believed to
keep evil spirits away. Unlike the typical churches in Maramures, this church
has a much smaller interior space, with walls no higher than 10 feet.

Surdesti - Church of Archangels Mickael and Gabriel

(Biserica Sfintii Arhangheli Mihail si Gavril)
Location: Maramures – Northern Romania
Nearby large town: Baia Mare (12 miles west)
Nearest train station: Baia Mare

Dating from 1767, the famous wooden church in Surdesti, built of oak beams skillfully intertwined, displays well-preserved interior watercolor canvases and a remarkable 175-feet tall belfry. Surdesti is known to be one of the highest oak buildings in the world with an overall height from ground level to the top of the steeple of 235 feet. Remarkably, no metal was used to erect the belfry as even the fastenings are made entirely from wood.

Dacian Fortresses of the Orastie Mountains
(Sarmisegetusa Regia)

Cetatea Sarmizegetusa
Location:   Transylvania region – Central Romania
Nearby large towns:   Hateg (37 miles west)   and   Deva (39 miles northwest)
Nearest village: Costesti (12 miles northwest) and Gradistea de Munte (6 miles west)

Dating from the 1st centuries B.C. and A.D the Dacian fortresses in Orastie Mountains show an unusual fusion of military and religious architectural techniques and concepts from the classical world and the late European Iron Age. Built as a defense ring around the capital of the Dacian kingdom, Sarmizegetusa (also Sarmisegetuza), the fortresses at Banita, Capalna, Costesti - Blidaru, Costesti – Cetatuie, Luncani - Piatra Rosie once formed the nucleus of the Dacian Kingdom. Although conquered by the Romans at the beginning of the 2nd century A.D. the extensive, well-preserved remains of these defensive works, still stand in spectacular natural surroundings and give a dramatic picture of a vigorous and innovative civilization.

Hiking enthusiasts can enjoy the trails in the nearby Retezat National Park, the oldest in Romania (established 1935). Covering 95,000 acres of pristine forests, alpine meadows, peaks, and some 80 glacial lakes, the area was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reservation and provides unforgettable hiking experiences among its peaks, valleys, rivers and gorges.

Planning your visit:

The sites are open, every day, from March 1 until November 30.

Access to Sarmisegetusa Regia:
Car (a paved road takes visitors half mile away from the site).
Park your car then walk 850 m (half mile) on the cobbled walking trail.

There is a small admittance fee to visit the Sarmisegetusa Regia:
5 Lei ($1.25) for adults and 2 lei ($0.50) for seniors and children.

The area is best explored during the summer season with proper hiking shoes and directions.

...

Roșia Montană, Historic Mining Area / Mining Landscape

Location: Transylvania – Central Romania
Nearby large towns: Alba Iulia (48 miles southeast), Deva (54 miles south) and Turda (62 miles northeast)

Nestled in the Apuseni Mountains, Roșia Montană "contains the most significant, extensive and technically diverse underground Roman gold mining complex currently known in the world", dating from the second century (attribuition: ICOMOS, an advisory body of UNESCO).

“Rosia Montana is a landscape of great cultural importance — a palimpsest of mining activity from Roman times through the Austro-Hungarian period to the Communist era”   (Attribution: Oxford University archaeology professor Andrew Wilson)

There is archaeological and metallurgical evidence of gold mining in the 'Golden Quadrilateral' of Transylvania since the late Stone Age. Roșia Montană (Alburnus Maior in Latin) was founded by the Romans, during the rule of emperor Trajan.
The earliest reference to the town is on a wax tablet dated 6 February 131. Archaeologists have discovered, in the area centred around Carpeni Hill, ancient dwellings, necropolises, mine galleries, mining tools, 25 wax tablets and many inscriptions in Greek and Latin. The Romans left Dacia in 271 but mining in Roșia Montană continued. Transylvania appears to have been a source of gold in Europe as early as the 3rd millennium BC and some scholars have suggested that ancient Dacian artifacts of gold may well trace their provenance to this very area. It is possible that most Roman artifacts across Europe may be wrought from gold exported from Roșia Montană.

Planning your visit to Roșia Montană
Nearest major train stations: Alba Iulia and Deva
Nearest international airport: Cluj Napoca (80 miles NE / 2 hours and 30 minutes drive)

Sights & Museums in Roșia Montană
— Old Town Rosia Montana
— The ancient Gold Mine Galleries and Mining Museum
Visiting hours: 10 am to 2 pm (Monday through Friday); To reach the mining galleries, visitors need to descend 158 steps (and climb the steps on the way back), via narrow corridors. Average temperature in the mine (year-round): 45 F to 52 F. Reservations and additional information: Dorin Rus (Mr.) – Telephone: (+4) 0747 122 857
— Workshop of local artisan Iosif Trifuţ – (traditional leather sandals "Opinci" in Romanian)

Nearest Tourist Info Centre:
Campeni (10 miles NW)
Telephone: +4 0258 772 926
E-mail

Attractions/ points of interest not far from Rosia Montana include:
Town of Alba Iulia
Scarisoara Glacier Cave
Apuseni Mts. Nature Park
Town of Deva

...

Traces of the Roman Empire - The Roman Empire Borders of Dacia

The Frontiers of the Roman Empire – Dacia, known as the Dacian Limes ("border wall") comprise 285 Roman sites, all across Romania, marking the northern boundaries of the Roman Empire.
Spaning more than 650 miles, it is the longest land Roman border sector of Europe.
The Dacian Limes include an extensive network of ancient Roman forts, earthen ramparts, legionary fortlets, brigeheads, military camps, watchtowers, legionary barracks, auxiliary barracks with civilian settlements, march barracks, towers and other fortification elements. showcasing the historical reach and organizational prowess of the Roman Empire.

Emperor Trajan crossed the Danube around AD 101/102, conquered Dacia in modern Romania and established a new province, which lasted until AD 271. As part of the general defensive system of the Roman Empire, the Danube limes on the Romanian territory strengthened the northern frontier of the Roman Empire power, constituting a physical manifestation of the Roman imperial policy. It illustrates the ambition of the Roman Empire to dominate the whole world by imposing its laws and lifestyle in a long-term perspective. It is the testimony of the Roman colonization in the affairs of the territories, the distribution of the Roman culture and the various traditions - military, engineering, architectural, religious, economic and political - and the numerous human settlements associated with state defence, which contribute to the understanding of the lives of Roman soldiers and their families, in this part of the Empire.

The Limes of the Roman Empire was not initially created as a bulwark or military facility against enemies, an impermeable barrier beyond these borders but as a place of exchange, communication and trade with the world beyond the Roman Empire. The Roman frontiers controlled and allowed population movements: not only military troops but also civilians and merchants. Thus, they have begun the exchange of cultural values through the deployment of soldiers and civilians of different ethnicities. This has caused profound changes and developments in the affected regions, in terms of habits of human settlements, architecture and landscaping, in a word, the organization of the surrounding area.
The forts, burgers, towers, earth ramparts, walls, along with the connected infrastructure and civil settlements indicate an important exchange of human and cultural values at the peak of the Roman civilization by developing the Roman military architecture and expanding its technical knowledge in the construction and management to the edges of the Empire. These structures reflect the imposition of a complex border system on existing societies starting from the northern part of the Roman Empire, introducing for the first time military installations and dependent civilian settlements connected through an extensive infrastructure network. The Lower Danube Limes in its final sector (Romania) is a remarkable example of the Roman military architecture, construction techniques and their evolution, perfected by engineers of the time, over many generations.
It demonstrates the variety and sophistication of the Romans' response to the specific and climatological topography, or to the political, military and social circumstances in the northern part of the Empire that can be found throughout the European Empire, and thus influenced most of the later developments in this part of the world.