Poiana Mărului

Poiana Mărului is a mountain settlement in the south-west of Brașov County, spread across the basin of the upper Șinca stream, on the border with Țara Bârsei and in the vicinity of the Munții Piatra Craiului. The village lies on DN73A, approximately 7 km from Zărnești and around 33 km from Brașov, at an average altitude of nearly 700 m. The locality's name comes from the apple orchards that once covered the area. A distinctive feature is the scattered layout of its homesteads, spread across the surrounding hills. Dirt tracks climb the ridges overlooking the Șinca valley up to an altitude of around 1,000 m and are used today as hiking routes, offering panoramic views towards Piatra Craiului, Bucegi and Măgura Codlei. The locality has an unusual history: the village was part of the estate of ruler Constantin Brâncoveanu, who purchased it in its entirety from boyars and merchants for the sum of 3,500 lei. In 1708, Brâncoveanu ordered that the estate be held in common by his four sons. Over the centuries, the settlement belonged to the district of Făgăraș and to Comitatul Alba, and after the First World War, in 1925, it was incorporated into Brașov County. At the centre of the village stands the Orthodox Church of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist, built between 1770 and 1777, notable for its Baroque iconostasis dating from around 1800. Between 1968 and 2002, through the annexation of the villages of Șinca Nouă and Paltin, Poiana Mărului was one of the largest communes in Romania, covering an area of approximately 144 km².