These were taken in November of 2010, so let’s say it was eight years ago or so. Things may look different now — hopefully better, given how much tourism this little town gets each year.

It was one of our typical jaunts through the medieval fortress, along its walls and back down the stairs toward the bottom of the hill. Still, the images show different spots from the ones you’ve seen here and here.

Should you want to know more about the town, click here and here. Enjoy the photographs!

Evening in the medieval city of Sighisoara, in Transilvania, Romania

Places

More images from Sighisoara

Places

The fortified church in Hetiur

Hetiur is a small village located between Sighișoara and Tg. Mureș in Transilvania, about 10 km away from the former. Formerly named Hetur and Hetura, known in Saxon as Marembrich and Hungarian as Hétúr, it is a Saxon settlement first mentioned in written documents in 1301. As is typical with settlements in Romania, the place is much older than the written documents. Coins from the time of Hadrian, made between 119-121 AD, were found in the village. Pieces of gold and silver jewelry made by the Daci were also found there. The village’s curious name comes from Hungarian and it means “seven masters” or “seven rulers”.

The fortified church was built in the 15th century in the Gothic style and underwent modifications and repairs in the 17th and 19th centuries. The church was blessed in person by Pope Martin the 5th, who also granted it a tax-free status, meaning the church no longer had to pay yearly dues to the Catholic Church. (source)

Enjoy the photographs!

The fortified church in Hetiur, Transilvania, Romania

Not much is known about the small medieval church in this Transylvanian village. Known in Romanian as Viișoara, it is Hundorf in German and Csatófalva in Hungarian. The clue about it not being fortified perhaps lies in its German name: “Hun-dorf” means “Hungarian village”. Since it was predominantly Hungarian with few Saxons, and it was the Saxons who fortified churches during medieval times… it didn’t happen here.

One source states the church was finished in the 15th century and then underwent modifications or restorations in 16th, 17th and 19th centuries. When we visited it in 2011, it wasn’t in the greatest of shapes. A date on one of the buttresses said “2010”, as in some repairs had been made just a year before our visit, but the place didn’t look it. Still, it wasn’t falling down either, so it was getting some care, though it wasn’t getting any good use.

Enjoy the photographs!

The fortified church in Viisoara, Transilvania, Romania

Places

The medieval church in Viișoara

Valea Viilor (“Wurmloch” in German, “Nagybaromlak” in Hungarian) is a village in Sibiu County, Transilvania, in a region known for its wine production during medieval times. Its name is translated in English as “The Valley of the Vineyards”. It is first mentioned in written documents in 1263 as “posessio Barwmlak”.

The church in this Saxon village was first built in the 14th century (see source). Its ruins can be seen beneath the floor of the sacristy. In 1414 a new church was erected over it. In turn, most of that later structure was then demolished or modified during the years 1500-1528, as the church was enlarged and fortified walls were built around it, making it a fortified church (see source).

Unlike a lot of other Saxon fortified churches in Transilvania, this structure received attention from later generations, and underwent needed repairs in 1738, 1782, 1826, 1969, 1987, 1996 and in recent years as well.

When we visited it back in April of 2011, the gates were locked and no gatekeeper was to be found, so we walked around its defensive walls, admiring the solid medieval architecture that has stood the test of time. Enjoy the photographs!

Fortified church, Valea Viilor, Transilvania, Romania

Places

The fortified church in Valea Viilor

Today is the International Day of the Romanian Blouse, and it is also the first day of an exhibition of a part of Ligia’s collection of traditional, authentic Romanian costumes (blouses, skirts and more). About twenty costumes are currently on display at the Museum of Natural Gas in Medias and can be seen there during normal business hours through the end of this week (the 29th of June). Admittance is free.

Some time ago, the two of us decided to call Ligia’s collection “Straie Alese“, because it includes authentic, rare, vintage, hand-woven and loom-woven articles of clothing from all parts of Romania. Most pieces are 50-70 years old and some are more than a century old. For those who have already asked, most are not for sale. A select few of the costumes are sometimes offered for sale.

The launch of the exhibition was held earlier today. You can see the photo gallery below. Now, an exhibition at a museum does not happen by itself. There were a tight-knit group of women who keep the tradition alive in our city and who were glad to find out about Ligia’s collection and they worked with Ligia to organize the showing, so we’d like to thank them here for their guidance and invaluable assistance. The exhibition would not have happened without them! 👏🙌🌻

We’re glad this first event happened right here in our city, which, situated as it is in the geographical heart of Romania and in the bosom of Transilvania, seems especially favored by fate to be a good starting place for a project that can reach far and wide. We are of course open to collaborations with other museums, here in Romania and abroad.

Enjoy the photographs!