Attraction
Orthodox Cathedral of the Ascension, Târgu Mureș
The Orthodox Cathedral of the Ascension is the largest religious building in Târgu Mureș, built on Piața Trandafirilor between 1925 and 1934 to designs by the architect Victor Vlad, on a Greek cross plan. It was consecrated on 2 December 1934, while its interior painting was completed only in 1986.
The Orthodox Cathedral dedicated to the Ascension of the Lord stands at no. 1 Piața Trandafirilor, in the centre of Târgu Mureș, on the spot once occupied by Péter Bodor's Singing Fountain. It is the largest religious building in the city and a listed historic monument (LMI code MS-II-m-B-15548). The equestrian monument of Avram Iancu stands in front of it.
The project was initiated by Archpriest Ștefan Rusu, who launched the first fundraising appeal on 12 May 1907. The foundation stone was laid on 10 May 1925 by Bishop Nicolae Ivan, in the presence of the Minister of Cults, Alexandru Lapedatu, and Octavian Goga. The church was designed by the architect Victor Vlad of the Timișoara Polytechnic, who also supervised the works, and was consecrated on 2 December 1934.
The neo-Byzantine building has an equal-armed Greek cross plan, with a central vault and four smaller vaults over the corner towers. The interior consists of the narthex, nave and sanctuary. The iconostasis, made in 1934, was carved by Traian Bobletec of Nazna and painted by Virgil Simonescu of Lugoj.
For lack of funds, the murals were painted only between 1970 and 1986; at the consecration only the dome had been painted. The narthex shows the seventeenth-century metropolitans of Transylvania Ilie Iorest and Sava Brancovici, framed by medallions of the most important Orthodox churches of Transylvania. The central dome holds a stained-glass window of Christ blessing, and the apse of the sanctuary is decorated with a mosaic of the Mother of God with the Child.
Piața Trandafirilor 1, Târgu Mureș, județul Mureș