Bucharest Neo-Romanian style windows

Bellow is a selection of Neo-Romanian style windows that adorn Bucharest houses. They date from the late 1900s to the late 1920s and reflect the evolution and change of tastes encompassed within that period of time by this architectural order peculiar to Romania.

The pair of windows above combines in a vernacular form, typical of most of Bucharest’s domestic architecture before the Great War, esoteric decorations like the four-leaf clover square motif with early Neo-Romanian patterns like the grape vine motif in the form of window strapwork aprons and the crenellated configuration filled with small medallions decorating the top of the wall openings.

The windows presented in the image above represent an early Neo-Romanian type, encountered in Bucharest domestic architecture before and first years after the Great War, which is still not well defined, having a series of minor Little Paris elements (the garlands and classical inspiration entablature design at the top) together with prominent Neo-Romanian elements like the the ample rope motif decorating the wall opening edges and the arabesque like panels above them, both inspired from the late medieval Wallachian church architecture.

This window in the photograph above a well defined Neo-Romanian type, which characterises the sophisticated architecture that started to emerge in the early 1920s. The decoration has some interesting echoes from the Art Nouveau era in the form of over-magnified ornaments relative to the size of the wall opening.

The last example of windows date from the late 1920s and reflect a simplification trend that started to distinguish the Neo-Romanian style in that period, that later in the 1930s evolved in fascinating Neo-Romanian – Art Deco syntheses.

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I endeavor through this daily series of daily articles to inspire appreciation of the historic houses of Romania, a virtually undiscovered, but fascinating chapter of European architectural history and heritage.

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If you plan acquiring a historic property in Romania or start a renovation project, I would be delighted to advice you in sourcing the property, specialist research, planning permissions, restoration project management, etc. To discuss your particular plan please see my contact details in the Contact page of this weblog.