Based on the projects of Spiegel and Márkus Géza, the Sonnenfeld Palace was built by Incze Lipót’s firm (1911-1912), and it features a basement, a ground floor and three upper floors. The printing factory was erected in the courtyard of the building. Stores were operated on the ground floor, while the upper floors were composed of the family’s apartments, as well as rooms for rent.

About

The owners of the palace were the members of the Sonnenfeld family, one of the oldest and most important Jewish families in Oradea. The name of their ancestors can be found on official documents ever since the 17^th century, while the first independent enterprise in the province in the domain of typography was the printing factory of Sonnenfeld Simon (1829-1876), which was founded in 1856. Under his and his descendants’ leadership, the factory developed more and more, becoming one of the most significant graphic workshops in the area.

The architecture

The palace features a simple façade, as the architect employed a neo-classical ornamental, Viennese Empire architectural vocabulary. There is a semi-circular tympanum over the gate, the image of a field presided over by the sun being a symbol of the Sonnenfelds.

The decorative elements are placed between the second and third levels: silhouettes of children and floral ornaments. Above the central jutty, there is an oval dormer with the emblem of the Sonnenfeld family flanked by statues of children – a replica of the decorative element on the façade of the palace.