Sopron's outstanding buildings have regained their historic image through a unified concept

The Museum Quarter in Sopron was inaugurated on Tuesday, linking the Storno House, the Fabricius House, the Tábornok House and the Fire Tower. The investment was part of the Modern Cities programme and cost more than three billion forints. The development, which covers an area of more than 2,000 square metres, was carried out by a consortium of Fertődi Építő és Szolgáltató Zrt. and Szabó és Társa Belsőépítészeti Kft., using a range of Cemix Hungary Kft. products.

The three houses did not form a single unit, either externally or internally

Reporting on the investment, our newspaper previously presented the renovation of the following three buildings in this article:

• The two-storey Baroque Fabricius House, built in the 17th century, contains several valuable medieval details;
• the Baroque General's House, which also served as a town hall in the 15th century;
• the development of the Storno House, which also has a long history, including the accommodation of King Matthias in the winter of 1482.

As previously reported, the development concept of the Museum Quarter in Sopron was designed to link the three museum buildings on the Main Square, which have been built together but have been operating separately, and the Fire Tower. One of the main reasons for the investment was that, while the buildings were used by one institution, the three buildings did not form a single unit, neither in their external nor in their internal systems.

The three buildings concerned now form a common space by connecting the internal passageways, but they remain independently accessible. In addition to minor structural interventions, the interior cladding and rendering of the buildings have been renewed, and the contractors have successfully addressed a number of challenges in the project with Cemix products and construction support services.

All three buildings are intertwined with the history of Sopron

In his inauguration speech on 13 June, the Parliamentary State Secretary of Építési és Közlekedési Minisztérium stressed that in the past 12 years the Government has spent some 28 thousand billion forints on the development of the country. Nándor Csepreghy said that since 2010, more than 350 billion forints have been spent from the budget to improve Sopron's accessibility. He said,

All the project elements of the Modern Cities programme will be completed in the next period, and substantive discussions will take place between Minister János Lázár and Sopron Mayor Ciprián Farkas in the near future.

Attila Barcza, Fidesz Member of Parliament for Sopron and its region, emphasized that the Museum Quarter will focus even more on the Main Square, the core of the city centre and the area around the Fire Tower. Mayor Ciprián Farkas said that the Storno House, the Fabricius House, the General's House and the Fire Tower are all buildings that are intertwined with the history of Sopron.

The exhibitions in the buildings form a chain of exhibitions about the past

According to the Sopron Museum, visitors can explore the connected buildings from the covered courtyard of the General's House. The exhibitions of the Museum Quarter are connected at several points, forming a chain that reveals the city's past.

The Fabricius House's exhibition of 17th and 18th century bourgeois housing culture, Home in the City, has been extended with a 19th century unit, and existing rooms, including the ancient stone room, have been renewed. The Storno family's historicist artist's dwelling and the museum's permanent exhibition on local history are also open to the public.

The new exhibition entitled "The Story of King Matthias in Folk Tales and Historiography" is both a tribute to King Matthias and a commemoration of King Matthias in fairy tales.

The medieval Dwelling Tower has been renovated with light-painted, filmed, animated, touchable props and tools, while the modern stone tower's exhibition entitled Travelling Statues presents a selection of works by Sopron's 17th and 18th century stone sculptors and carvers. The museum library has been given a modern makeover, and the Storno Memorial Library has been equipped with a space for library pedagogical activities. In addition, the Fabricius House Gallery, the Storno Kitchen and the Castle Wall Garden are open to the public again.