Heritage of Timișoara

Fabric 2A Ion Luca Caragiale str.

Nicolae Coșariu House

Alternative names:

Jewish Community's Former Retirement House / Miklós Kossáriu House

Completion date:

19th century

  • Architect: Unknown
  • Former Owner: "Status Quo" Jewish Community of Fabric Miklós Kossáriu (Nicolae Coșariu)
  • Construction authorization: March 26, 1891
  • Modification authorization: April 1905
  • Property type: Private property
  • Protection type: Architectural Ensemble
    Urban ensemble "Fabric" (II)
    TM-II-a-A-06097
  • Main arch. style Historicist/Eclectic
  • Current condition Fair
  • Planimetry Rectangular Complex
  • No. of levels 1
  • Current functions Single property
    House




A notification of the Court House of Timișoara published in December 1878 in Budapesti Közlöny (The Monitor of Budapest), talks about the citizen Juon Kossáriu from Kiszetó (today Chizătău village in Timiș county), who died without a will, but whose house and land lawfully belong to his heir Miklós Kossáriu. The court house’s decision is dated 4 February 1878. Contestations could be made 45 days after the publication of the decision.

We have no information about the circumstances of the arrival in Timișoara of Miklós Kossáriu (in the historical documents examined, his name is sometimes written Miklós Cossáriu or Cosariu, the Hungarian spelling of the Romanian name Nicolae Coșariu), but we do know some things about his activity in teh city at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century.

Between 1886 and 1892, he was editor in chief and owner (starting with 1888) of the newspaper "Gazeta Poporului" (The People’s Gazette), a publication that wanted to be a continuation of “Timișiana. Foia pentru trebuințele poporului român” (Timișana. A paper For The Needs Of The Romanian People). He was also a founding member of Timișiana Bank.

Around 1890, Miklós Kossáriu purchases a plot in Fabric, on the street currently known as Ion Luca Caragiale (formerly Jokái Mór Street). The land was part of the new plots created on the whereabouts of the former Vorpark (situated south of the boulevard currently known as 3 August 1919, between The Romans’ Square and Queen Mary Park) by the Town Hall of Timișoara. According to an article from The Monitor of Timișoara from 1903, before being bought by Kossáriu, the plot had been sold by the Town Hall to Lázár Szilárd in 1888. On 26 March 1891, Miklós Kossáriu received a construction permit for building a one storey house on that plot.

From The Monitor of Timișoara (July 1902) we find out that the building was sold for 29,310 crowns to the Israelite Community "Status Quo", who had erected in 1899 a synagogue in Moorish style on the neighbouring plot. Three years later, in April 1905, the community obtains a building permit for ”the conversion of a one storey house and extension of the temple”, probably giving Kossáriu House the form it has today. For a while, the building housed the nursing home of the Israelite Community.

Authors of this file:

Research & text: Alexandra Palconi-Sitov

Field research & mapping: Arh. Vlad Pată

Consultant: Mihai Opriș

Translation into English: Cristina Chira

Photographer: Flavius Neamciuc

Last modified: 3 years ago

Published on: 24 March 2020

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