About

The neoclassical style is represented by the Kováts House – a civil construction erected at the beginning of the 19^th century, attaining its current look in 1836. The factor that has determined the architectural classification of the building as classical is the semicircular coffered arch that covers the gangway of the main entrance.

From 1807, the ground floor of the house was where the oldest pharmacy in the New Town was set up – bearing the name Crucea de Aur (Auream Crucem, the Golden Cross, 1745). It was the property of pharmacist József Schmidt, who, in 1835, changed his name to Kováts. We can assume that the name of the building also came from here.

The building was reconstructed in 1836 due to a devastating fire. The old pharmacy operated at the ground floor of the building and, after its renovation, moved to the wing facing Episcop (Bishop) Mihai Pavel Street. Hala Café (Csarnok Kávéház, 1892) also operated on the ground floor of the building, facing Piața Unirii (Szent László tér, Union Square), while the upper floor housed the Civil Preservation House, and then the New Town’s House of Savings and Credit (1893).