Handsome Pecs is Hungary's first ever European cultural capital

Dec 22, 2009, 11:16 GMT

Pecs, Hungary - A hub for the dialogue between east and west - that's what the attractive city of Pecs in south-western Hungary aims to be when tourists start coming here in 2010 to view one of three locations designated as cultural capitals for a calendar year by the European Union.

This self-styled 'city without borders' aims to map out the wealth of cultural tradition in a region where Germans, Ottoman Turks and many others have left their mark down the centuries. Next year is certainly a fine time to visit Pecs which has gone to great lengths to show itself in the best possible light.

Naturally, first impressions are important too and Pecs scores low here. The approaches to the city of 175,000 residents take motorists through a bleak quarter characterized by drab blocks of apartments. The highest building in the town has even made it into the Guinness Book of Records. The 24-storey monolith has the dubious distinction of being Europe's tallest empty tower block.

The historic centre of town is a welcome contrast. Many prime examples of Turkish architecture have been renovated in recent years, the run-down parks have been given a much-needed makeover and public places have been spruced-up and made more attractive.

Local travel guide Janos Habel usually starts his tour at Szechenyi Square which is right in the centre of town. It is the site of the former Pasha Kasim Gazi mosque which was built in 1585 out of stones taken from the former Romanesque St Bertalan Cathedral erected in the 13th century.

The building was later re-consecrated and serves today as the parish church for Catholic worshippers. Its distinctive green cupola dominates the square. The building was once topped by a minaret but this feature was removed when the Turks retreated and the cross has supplanted the crescent that once adorned the interior. Left over from Turkish times is a prayer alcove with Arabic inscriptions.

Conceived as a symbol of the two religions reaching out toward each other, the most recent addition to the texts here is the first verse of the Koran in Arabic which was added in 1986.

Szechenyi Square underwent a transformation after the Turks left, Janos Habel explains. The bazaar was torn down and a column signifying the holy trinity was erected in place of the ritual purification baths. In the wake of the collapse of communism in 1989/90, many houses, such as the former savings banks or the royal courthouse, were restored to their former architectural glory.

'Only the Nador Hotel has remained empty,' said Habel. 'Back in socialist times the coffee lounge on the ground floor was the last refuge of middle-class life in the whole town and it is sorely missed by many older residents.'

The art nouveau fountain donated to the town by Hungarian porcelain manufacturer Zsolnay is often overlooked by visitors yet is well worth a visit. The heads of the water-spewing bulls feature an eosin glaze which causes them to shimmer in iridescent metallic hues. The colour of the water expelled changes, depending on the angle of the sun's reflection.

The story of eosin is told in the Zsolnay museum next door which displays many works of art from the ceramics factory founded by Vilmos Zsolnay. He developed the frost-resistant eosin process 150 years ago and it features on many art nouveau buildings in Hungary along with the fired, durable roof tiles known as pyrogranite.

Large areas of the old works have been derelict for years yet the mood here is now more upbeat since the abandoned production halls are a key project to mark the cultural year. The aim is to create a cultural quarter with an industrial history theme park along with a centre for contemporary arts.

A film studio for cartoons is due to start work here and will provide jobs for 300 people. 'As with a number of other locations this ambitious project will probably not be completed until after 2010,' said Habel. Prior to that the site is scheduled to hold an exhibition devoted to the intensity of colour.

The visitor centre at the early Christian burial necropolis of Cella Septichora close to the city centre has already opened to the public. 'The excavated buildings which date back to the 4th century are a very special historical monument since they preserve a form of two-storey building seldom used for religious buildings in antiquity,' said Habel. 'They also served as burial chambers and chapels.'

Most notable among these is the Peter and Paul burial chamber found at the centre of the complex which numbers sixteen structures in all and is listed by UNESCO as a world heritage site.

The most distinctive landmark in Pecs is still the four-towered cathedral which has been destroyed and rebuilt more than once. The foundation stone was laid by King Stephan in 1009 but the present neo-Romanesque exterior is a product of the 19th century. To mark the 1,000 anniversary the façade has been renovated and the attractive square in front has been remodelled to create a handsome urban ensemble.

After so much cultural input most visitors will be in need of some rest and refreshment and fortunately they do not have to go far to find it. The downtown Kiraly utca pedestrian area yields plenty of restaurants and cafes and while sipping a drink at one of the tables outside visitors will probably be struck by the large number of young people in this student city.