"Maramures, old country, matchless people" goes an old saying. This is a land of stupendous beauty, home to live tradition and to an almost overwhelming breed of hospitality. Halt for just a second or so admiring the craftsmanship of someone's majestic carved wooden gate and ponder on the ancient symbols of the sun and the tree of life that adorn it, and someone is sure to hurry out of the house bearing a jug of refreshing water or a bowl of fruit to offer you. Locals who now live in Baia Mare, the capital city of the county, display the same healthy and hearty spirit that they were born into in the village of their parents and grandparents. The big city of the north includes the settlements of Blidari, Firiza, Valea Neagra, and Valea Borcutului. Modern architecture is projected against the backdrop of the Ignisului Mountains, while the Sasar river runs through the heart of the city.
Nature in its generosity has been both shelter and cradle to a strong community in this area. During the Bronze Age, it was the realm of the Thracians from which later descended the Geto-Dacians. It was also part of the large Dacian state formed by Burebista.
The first written historical record of Baia Mare speaks of a strong mining center, already displaying much of the attire of a medieval city. It had its own government, as many of the other free settlements of the time. The first historical attestation of Baia Mare dates back to 1329, more than six centuries ago, and was issued by King Charles Robert. Then the city was known as "Rivulus Dominarum"(The Ladies' River). The richest documentation, however, is found in the act of privilege issued by Louis I the Great of Anjou in 1347. A document from 1411 speaks of the Mint in Baia Mare, one of the oldest and most famous in Transylvania. In 1446 the mines and domain of Baia Mare become the property of the Corvin family as a token of gratitude for the bravery shown by Iancu de Hunedoara in his battles against the invading Turks. Iancu commissioned the Saint Stephan cathedral whose Stephan Tower remains a landmark of the city to this date. In 1469 Matei Corvin bestows upon the city the right to develop its defense system by erecting fortified walls and keeps, strengthened by deep moats and lerge palisades to keep out the invaders. Baia Mare thus became an impressive fortress. But demise followed glory, brought about by disputes, concessions and transfers between Transylvanian princes. In 1600, as a sign of gratitude for having cancelled several of the city's debts, the tenant of local mines, Felician Herbstein, ordered a coin to be minted in gold, displaying the effigy of the Wallachian prince, Mihai Viteazul. Collectors agree that this is an effigy of the prince of great numismatic value. In 1703, the legendary outlaw Pintea Viteazul was witness, alongside Francisc Rakoczi II, to the freeing of the city from the hands of the Austrians. The year 1889 sees the printing of the first newspaper in Romanian - "Gutinul" - a weekly paper dealing in matters social, literary and economic.
The north of the country has given birth to a fascinating culture of things made in and out of wood. Houses, gates, and churches are all precious pieces of exquisite craftsmanship. A jewel among jewels is the church erected by artisans in 1630 in the village of Chechis. In 1939 the monument was transferred to Baia Mare. There, together with other houses, it became part of the open-air ethnographic museum. The church, graceful and of such apparent fragility, is built exclusively of wood joined together without any nails.
The Saint Trinity church was built at a later stage in 1717-1720. Built in the baroque style, it has two identical steeples and a bulb-shaped roof. The interior of the cathedral displays murals, stained glass and sculptures together with impressive furniture built of massive wood. The Iancu de Hunedoara House built by Matei Corvin in 1468 is still standing. It used to be a part of the former medieval castle built by Iancu de Hunedoara for his wife Elisabeta. The gothic Stephen Tower built by Iancu de Hunedoara is over 40 meters high and served as watch keep and fire alarm tower. Other landmarks that deserve to be seen are the Mint built between 1734-1737 today housing the County Museum; the Butchers' Tower built in the XVth century - the legend says that it was from here that the bullet which killed Pintea Viteazul was shot; the Old Inn - where fairs were held in the past has been, from 1870, the City Hall. Here one can find the local Tribunal, the Notary public and the College of Lawyers.
A visitor to the city has a number of places to see that should not be missed: the orthodox church built on the foundation of an earlier place of worship; the Cathedral of the Assumption, built between 1905-1911 and painted by the artist Gheorghe Busuioc; the Culture House with a hall seating 700; the Prefecture which is a happy combination of modern architecture with the original use of materials - andesine, travertine, concrete, chiseled stone, and copper; the Mara Hotel in the south of the city has the unmistakable "Maramures spindle" cast in metal atop its roof similar to an obelisk; the Theater built in 1967 is decorated with valuable frescos painted by Nicolae Apostol.
What impresses in Baia Mare apart from the architectural diversity and the abundant vegetation, is the explosion of color and scent of flowers. Their special place is Expo Flora in the context of a very important annual event - The Festivity of the Sweet Chestnuts. The first such event was born on 1993 from a wish to give the people of the city three days of fun, a regale of chestnuts and chestnut-based products combined with music, folk art, sports and dance. Baia Mare is the northernmost city in the world where the sweet chestnut tree grows. The tree is mentioned in a document dated September 24, 1642, which tells us that the secretary of the city sent a gift of chestnuts trees are those on the Tausii de Sus hill. They rise over 20 meters high and are over 500 years old.
And if already outside the city a closer look can be given to other marvels in the area: the church in Surdesti, whose spire is so tall and slender that it gently sways in the breeze; the Happy Cemetery in Sapanta, masterpiece of the artisan Stan Ion Patras, the resplendent wooden gates at Botiza, the woolly hand woven blankets painted with vegetal tints from Ieud, the natural park Pietrosul Mare, the Rodna Mountains, the lakes Bodi-Ferneziu, Bodi Suior, the Blue Lake, the spas at Borsa, Izvoarele, Magosa...
The Happy Cemetery in Sapanta
Nature here is generous as the people of Maramures
