I would like to show you the centre of Hodmezovasarhely the most important square with the help of 360 Cities, an interactive map. You will see the buildings in the square and I give you some information about the buildings. It was taken last year and Kossuth square doesn't show its best face as there are no flowers. It's much nicer when everything is green and blooming. I'll post some photos later.
Hódmezővásárhely - Kossuth tér in
Hodmezovasarhely
Panorámafotó: Illés Tibor
ITB Panoráma Fotó, Szeged
When you switch on the map the first building to appear is the building of the former
National Bank. It was designed by Miksa Muller, an architect from Szeged, and was built in 1906-1907. Its dome is remarkable and on top of that you can see the sculpture of Mercury who was the god of trade in Greek mythology. There are more reference to the function of the building. There are two sculptures, a man and a woman, representing thrift and agriculture on the facade and also a beehive. It is a very fine example of secessionist architecture.
Next to the bank on the right you can find the
Gorog palota or Greek Palace. On the ground floor you can find a supermarket and on the first floor there are flats. It is quite an old building but I have no idea why it is called Greek palace.
On the right on the other side of the road the orange and yellow palace is called
Lotta palace. Its owner was a woman of Greek origin so it might have something to do with the name of the previous house. Until 1908 it was grey and some locals called it grey palace. After that when it lost its grey colour people started to call it Lotta palace referring to the name of the owner. It was one of the first buildings in the town with more than one floors.
Next to Lotta palace there is a newly built building where you can find
OTP, a Hungarian bank and ATMs.
If you look at the map at the background you can see a building with blue tiles on it. That's
Sarokhaz, a cafe which is one of the few where you can still smoke. It's strange as it operates as a confectionary as well. You can have alcohol too. When the weather is nice it has an outdoor terrace which is a very good place with children as there's no traffic around and they can run around on the lawn.
Next to Sarokhaz still in the background you can find the
Old Reformed Church. Apart from its obvious religious functions it was a place from where people checked the enemy coming, fires and floods. It is built in Baroque style in the 17th-18th century. In 1741-42 a wall ws built around the church which can still be seen. During school students from Bethlen Gabor Reformed Grammar Scool students come to church service On Mondays and Fridays in the morning at 7:30 so it can bee quite crowded then.
In the foreground you can see the
statue of Kossuth. He was a well known figure as a freedom fighter and bellwether of democracy in Europe. He was one of the most important figure in the Hungarian revolution and war of independence. Hodmezovasarhely local government decided to erect the statue in 1894. The finished statue was put on this place on 22nd March 1903 where Kossuth delivered a speech in Hodmezovasarhely while recruiting soldiers for the war. The statue was made by Ede Kallos a famous artist born in Hodmezovasarhely.
