The Golescu villa and its annex are situated in Campulung-Muscel, a picturesque town at the foothills of the Southern Carpathians. The house commands a remakable view of the town and the valley towards the east, south and west; the woodland garden north of the house turns into a forest.

The Golescu Villa was built in 1910 and is a good example of the neo-Romanian architectural style with carved-stone window surrounds and string-courses, a well-proportioned loggia and modestly decorated and harmonious arches. It has a remarkable three hectar terraced park with magnolias, roses, pines and wild flowers.

Exceptionally, the Golescu house still stands in relatively good condition. During the 45 years of communism, Irina and Viorica Golescu, twin sisters descendents of Vasile Golescu, who built the house, were allowed to go on living there and were able to carry out basic maintenance. Vasile Golescu had been trained in France in forrestry at the well-known Ecole des Eaux et Forêts and surrounded his villa with a beautiful park which he landscaped himself and in which he planted a rich assortment of tree and plants. The villa is remarkable for its architecture, the gardens and the furniture that the Golescu sisters so carefully preserved.

The Golescu sisters were remarkable personalities in their own right. Their exquisite taste is characteristic of the cultivated Romanian gentry class that did so much to build modern Romania. During the last years of the Ceausescu era the Golescu villa became a pilgrimage site for people looking for traces of older and kinder times in a devastated land.

Before they died, the Golescu sisters made a donation of the property and its contents to the Pro Patrimonio Foundation. Due to its considerable historic value, the house and its annex will be restored and converted by Pro Patrimonio to provide both a memorial to the Golescu family and accomodation.

Description

The villa is a happy example of neo-Romanian architecture typical of Wallachia, with a tower, loggia, arches, framework and profiles, all well-proportioned and decorated in a discreet manner. The footing, arches, cornice, parapet, pillars and framework are made of Albeti stone. The cross-shaped partium of the house has 3 rooms on the ground floor and 4 on the first floor – arranged symmetrically around a central hall. The large inner spaces are well-proportioned and lighted.

Manor houses or villas are found all over Romania dating back to the 17th century or, more commonly, to the 18th — 19th century. But when communism came to Romania in 1945, the owners were evicted, the houses were nationalized and used as local authority offices, schools or collective-farm headquarters. Many of them were abandoned and fell into ruin.

The Golescus, one of the oldest Wallachian families

The Golescus, an old Wallachian family which dates back into the 15th century, are mentioned in chronicles. In the 19th century, members of the family distinguished themselves in politics and played a major role in the emergence of modern Romania after 1848. From the beginning, the family estates were in the area of Muscel, in Wallachia, where the Golescu manor house now stands.

The restoration work

This ambitious restoration project covers the villa (the main building and the annex), the furniture and also the beautiful garden.

Restoration work began in September 2003 by Adrian Cosa, an architect from the Pro Patrimonio Campulung branch under the supervision of the late Matei Lykiardopol and, after his death, of Alexandra Chiliman.

The first phases of the restoration included rebuilding the fence around the property, rebuilding of the draining system, a new connection to the municipal sewage and draining system and the installation of modern heating.

A preliminary design for the restoration of the garden has been made by French landscape designer Clément Briandet. This designed was further extended by a team of students from the Ion Mincu Institute of Architecture in Bucharest in cooperation with Pro Patrimonio France under financing from UNESCO. This considerable pedagogical effort is part of Pro Patrimonio's mission of increasing the awareness of the population of its heritage and has already had a substantial impact on the local community.

In 2006, following a 30 000 € donation from Sherban Cantacuzino and the Lafarge 21 tons of cement donation, restoration work has advanced quickly with completion of the consolidation work on both buildings, the complete refurbishing of the sanitary installations and the contracting of work on the interior under the direction of Alexandra Chiliman. Maintenance work on the garden has also nicely progressed under the direction of Nicolas Priboi.

Another part of the project concerned the restoration of the period furniture bequeathed by the Golescu sisters. Caroline d'Assay and Irina Prodan completed a detailed inventory of the furniture, including a description of the restoration work necessary for each piece.

The complete restoration work will cost approximately 150 000 €.

Sponsors

This restoration has been possible by the support of Pro Patrimonio UK, Pro Patrimonio France, LAFARGE ROMCIM and UNESCO.

New uses of the villa

Once restored, the villa will be used for cultural and historical activities; it will also house the local branch of Pro Patrimonio, a documentation center and a data base on the heritage of the region.

This charming villa will also be used as bead and breakfast as a stage on the tourist itinerary from Bucarest, to Targoviste, Campulung-Muscel and Rucar toward Bran and the Saxon village of Transylvania.

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Golescu Villa: photo gallery
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