Arad City(Other attractions)

The water tower

The development the town sustained during the 19th century transformed Arad from a medieval town into a modern one. The majority of the buildings erected in this period were in Neoclassic and Secession style offering a specific character to the town. The central area has polarized the institution, the greatest part of the flats, commercial, cultural, medical, administrative, and educational units.
Under the circumstances, the middle of the town has an architectonic area known by the natives as "The Firemen's Square". The name comes from the fact that the headquarters of the civilian fireman unit was there. The Firemen's Square was founded in 1835. Nearby, Saint Florian Chapel was erected; it is known that Saint Florian is the patron of the firemen.

In the second half of the 19th century, the local authorities decided to build the Water Tower - an edifice that would be very important for town life. The tower was built in order to supply the whole town with water and to have enough water in the case of fires.
The tower is 35 m high and was ready to be used in 1896. As an architectonic style, it fits the suburb it is placed in. The tower made of stone and bricks, impresses visitors with its massiveness and height.
The balconies and windows have a nice ornamentation. The visitors are also impressed by the variety of adornments existing on the top level.

The house with the padlock

 The development of the social and economic life had determined the appearance of the corporation, which grew in importance and were in a large variety. In 1718 only one guild was recorded; one century later, in 1823, 32 corporations are to be found in Arad.
The Arad corporation built some houses, which, due to their architecture, dominated the centre of the town, in the respective interval of time. In connection with this kind of activity, there is a building in Arad, which is worth visiting. Who does not know this house? Walking by it, who has not watched that padlock which is the theme of so many stories?
The most popular story says that the person who is able to unlock the respective padlock will get the house. But it is just a story because the padlock has no mechanism and the hole for the key is only for cheating the eye. The house was built in 1815 by Iosif Winkler, a merchant of Vienna; it was restored in 1851, date carved above the gate. In the corner of the building, in the Plevnei Street, there is a niche which houses a trunk put in a metal bar closed with a padlock. The researches have established that the trunk, built in 1827, was used only for ornament. "The Iron Trunk" (wood rolled in metallic sheet), placed in the respective niche, was made according to the Vienna model. Such trunks are to be found in all the large cities where the corporation had important activities such as: Vienna, Bratislava, Buda, Arad, Oradea, Timisoara, a.s.o. There are opinions, which say that they are means of popularisation for merchants.
"The Iron Trunk" is also a memory of the corporation. The journeymen, before becoming masters were obliged to do a piece of work to prove their professional training. Before doing it, they were supposed to travel through the country or even abroad. Leaving the town, they went to the trunk and stroke a nail into it. The House with the Padlock from Arad is also connected to the revolutionary events of 1848-1849. The house, for an interval of time, was the residence of the secret police of the Austrian Emperor and in the cellar, many revolutionaries were imprisoned.



 Gai Monastery

   

In the North- West side of Arad in the Gai suburb, at the end of the Danube street, there is a monument of the 17th century, the Saint Simon Monastery. It was erected in 1760-1762 by the bishop Sinesie Jivanovici (1751-1768) for his every memory and for his descendant's bishop seat of Arad. The contract signed on the 15th - 26th of May by the bishop Sinesie and the Arad master mason, Egidius Ioanovici, foresaw the erection of the monastery for 98000 Gold Florins. The two contracting parts discussed the project. The monastery was supposed to be formed of a mansion (residence of the bishop), a church and auxiliary buildings. The mansion was used as summer residence for the bishops of Arad. The church was the place where a large majority of people came to pray and listen to the priests' service. According to the wish of the bishop Sinesie, the church was built in Baroque style. Due to his wish, the church was part of a mansion, which was added to the church on its northern side. The whole complex has the form of the letter "U" because of the two exits towards the East marked by the apse of the church and the inner chapel existing in the Northern-Eastern side of the mansion.
The Eastern side of the complex is impressive and richly adorned, bearing the characteristics of the epoch. The church tower found in the south-western side, impresses by the two registers and the cornice between them. In the axis of the tower, there is the door of the church foreseen with a stone, rectangular frame. The tower has a pyramidal roof, formed of arched slopes made of zinc plates. The inner side of the church is typical to all orthodox churches. Towards the East, there is the semicircular apse of the altar, which presents a polygonal shape in the outside part. The altar table is made of red marble. The bishop Sinesie is buried in the altar.
After the demolition of the old cathedral of Arad, in 1861 the mortal remains of the bishop buried there were moved in the altar of this monastery.
Visitors of this monastery are impressed by the iconostasis of the church in the Neo-classic style. Extremely beautiful are the kings doors having a special ornamentation.


TRAIAN BRIDGE

The building of the Traian Bridge was solicited by the local administration at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1908 the project of the Austrian Railway Society was accepted. The bridge was built after the plans of engineer Robert Toth (1857-1913) from Reşiţa, the iron structure being made at the plants in his town. The ornamentation contains many secession elements. The weight test and the official delivery to the local authorities of the bridge took place on 11th November 1910. At the end of the W.W. II the bridge was dynamited, but its structure wasn't badly affected. The bridge was remade in a few months after the end of the war. Being an industrial monument, it currently functions with weight restrictions.