The best museums Târgu Mureş

The city's emblem, this imposing palace was built between 1908 and 1913 in the Transylvanian Secession style, according to the plans of Budapest-born architects Marcell Komor and Jakab Dezső. This duo also designed the nearby town hall. On the outside, its massive form is softened by its coloured tiles, mosaics, stained glass windows, bas-reliefs and statues. A visit to the interiors of this amazing building is a must: created by members of the Art School of Gödöllő, they are a true demonstration of Hungarian decorative and applied arts. The paintings and stained-glass windows, with original colours and patterns, create a very special atmosphere. The hall is a masterpiece in itself, where green, blue and gold dominate, as well as floral motifs. In the staircase, the stained glass windows depict portraits of historical figures, signed by Miksa Róth, a great master of Hungarian Art Nouveau stained glass. On the first floor, the Hall of Mirrors (Sala oglinzilor) has two Venetian mirrors and twelve valuable stained glass windows, evoking scenes from everyday life in Transylvania or Sicilian legends.

The large concert hall, which today houses the local philharmonic orchestra, is decorated with plant and animal motifs, purple and gold, inspired by Transylvanian folk art. It also has a gigantic organ with more than 4,000 pipes.

The building also houses the Museum of Art, which exhibits works by Romanian and Hungarian artists of the 19th and 20th centuries.

On Trandafirilor Square, between Secession houses and 1970s buildings, the Museum of Ethnography and Folk Art is housed in a superb ^18th-century Baroque building, the Toldalagi Palace. It features interesting collections of objects reflecting the ethnic diversity of the region: folk costumes, textiles, wooden objects, ceramics, icons painted on wood and glass, etc. Part of the exhibition is dedicated to the annual fairs held in and around the town in the first half of the ^20th century.