The Wondrous Citadel Of Calnic
Romania has thousands of different things to offer to visitors, so it is no surprise that more and more tourists are now choosing to visit the country.
Whether it is a gloriously hot summer's day or in the middle of the winter season, Romania always has a plethora of attractions to offer to its guests.
Fans of UNESCO World Heritage Sites will not be disappointed, as the country has a mixture of different cultural and natural UNESCO sites.
One of the most interesting UNESCO sites in the whole Transylvanian region of the country is the spectacular Citadel of Calnic which is situated near to the Calnic Village.
Although there are many other Saxon citadels in the surrounding area, the Citadel of Calnic takes a special place in the hearts of many Transylvanians, because of its remarkable history.
It was originally built in the thirteenth century, for the Count Kelling and his family.
The Count desired a nobleman's residence with proper fortifications, so the fortress included a solid, rectangular living area, surrounded by strong, oval fortified wall.
Because of the unfavorable location of the residence (in a dip, rather than on top of a hill) the residence required the extra security which could be afforded by a moat.
The fortified wall around the outside of the citadel is approximately 1m thick.
Whilst it was originally only 14m high, the wall was later raised to be about 20m high.
The Citadel remained a nobleman's home until the middle of the fifteenth century, when descendents of the original Count Kelling decided to sell the property on to a collective of peasant farmers who came from the community in the nearby village.
Following that purchase, the make-up of the buildings inside the citadel walls changed, and a variety of different buildings were constructed inside the walls of the fortress, to help to protect the villagers and their goods.
Some of the adaptations that they made included further fortifying the walls (raising their height as mentioned earlier), enforcing the tower gate, building a town chapel and building provisions houses inside the walls, so that the harvest could be safely stored.
During the fifteenth century, many beautiful frescos were painted to brighten up the decor.
Although some aspects of the Citadel of Calnic were damaged during the late nineteenth and twentieth century, most of the citadel was restored to its former glory during the early 1960's by a team of Romania restorers.
Many of the original frescos are still visible.
The area also acts as a cultural centre and a wing of the Archaeology and Art History Institute of Transylvania.
Inside the citadel walls, there is now a museum space including displays of medieval and contemporary art which are displayed across two levels.
These displays are regularly changed, so that it is possible to see a wide variety of different pieces of art.
Throughout the Citadel of Calnic it is possible for visitors to admire many different items of Transylvanian art, including paintings on wood and glass, ceramic pieces, carpets, fashion items, objects of worship, sculptures, metalwork, gravures and old Romanian and German printed works.
One of the most interesting sections of any visit to the Calnic commune is a trip to the wine cellar.
The area has been producing wines since the middle ages, using a variety of different techniques, and there is an exhibition in the basement of the tower which related to the art of Romanian viniculture.
Many visitors are astounded by the size of the wine barrels in this cellar, because some of them are large enough to hold 5000 - 6000 liters of wine inside!
Whether it is a gloriously hot summer's day or in the middle of the winter season, Romania always has a plethora of attractions to offer to its guests.
Fans of UNESCO World Heritage Sites will not be disappointed, as the country has a mixture of different cultural and natural UNESCO sites.
One of the most interesting UNESCO sites in the whole Transylvanian region of the country is the spectacular Citadel of Calnic which is situated near to the Calnic Village.
Although there are many other Saxon citadels in the surrounding area, the Citadel of Calnic takes a special place in the hearts of many Transylvanians, because of its remarkable history.
It was originally built in the thirteenth century, for the Count Kelling and his family.
The Count desired a nobleman's residence with proper fortifications, so the fortress included a solid, rectangular living area, surrounded by strong, oval fortified wall.
Because of the unfavorable location of the residence (in a dip, rather than on top of a hill) the residence required the extra security which could be afforded by a moat.
The fortified wall around the outside of the citadel is approximately 1m thick.
Whilst it was originally only 14m high, the wall was later raised to be about 20m high.
The Citadel remained a nobleman's home until the middle of the fifteenth century, when descendents of the original Count Kelling decided to sell the property on to a collective of peasant farmers who came from the community in the nearby village.
Following that purchase, the make-up of the buildings inside the citadel walls changed, and a variety of different buildings were constructed inside the walls of the fortress, to help to protect the villagers and their goods.
Some of the adaptations that they made included further fortifying the walls (raising their height as mentioned earlier), enforcing the tower gate, building a town chapel and building provisions houses inside the walls, so that the harvest could be safely stored.
During the fifteenth century, many beautiful frescos were painted to brighten up the decor.
Although some aspects of the Citadel of Calnic were damaged during the late nineteenth and twentieth century, most of the citadel was restored to its former glory during the early 1960's by a team of Romania restorers.
Many of the original frescos are still visible.
The area also acts as a cultural centre and a wing of the Archaeology and Art History Institute of Transylvania.
Inside the citadel walls, there is now a museum space including displays of medieval and contemporary art which are displayed across two levels.
These displays are regularly changed, so that it is possible to see a wide variety of different pieces of art.
Throughout the Citadel of Calnic it is possible for visitors to admire many different items of Transylvanian art, including paintings on wood and glass, ceramic pieces, carpets, fashion items, objects of worship, sculptures, metalwork, gravures and old Romanian and German printed works.
One of the most interesting sections of any visit to the Calnic commune is a trip to the wine cellar.
The area has been producing wines since the middle ages, using a variety of different techniques, and there is an exhibition in the basement of the tower which related to the art of Romanian viniculture.
Many visitors are astounded by the size of the wine barrels in this cellar, because some of them are large enough to hold 5000 - 6000 liters of wine inside!
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