Jump to content

House of the Free Press

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Bogdangiusca (talk | contribs) at 00:10, 3 March 2006 (copy-edit). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

File:Casa Scanteii 02 bgiu.jpg
Casa Presei Libere, as seen from Herăstrău
File:Casa Scanteii.jpg
Casa Presei Libere

Casa Presei Libere is a building in northern Bucharest.

The construction began in 1952 and was completed in 1956. The building was named Combinatul Poligrafic Casa Scînteii "I.V.Stalin" and later Casa Scînteii (Scînteia was the name of the Romanian Communist Party's official newspaper). It was designed by the architect Horia Maicu, in the pure (albeit comparatively small-scale) style of Soviet Socialist realism, resembling the main building of the Moscow State University, and was intended to house all of Bucharest's printing presses, the newsrooms and their staff.

It has a foundation with an area of 280x260m, the total constructed surface is 32,000 m² and it has a volume of 735,000 m³. Its height is 91.6 m without the television antenna, which has an additional 12.4 m. [1]

File:Lenin statue pulled down.jpg
Lenin's statue being pulled down

In front of the building, on 21 April 1960 was placed a giant statue of Vladimir Lenin, made by Romanian sculptor Boris Caragea. This statue was however removed on 3 March 1990, following the Romanian Revolution of 1989.[2]

It has basically the same role nowadays, with many of today's newspapers having their headquarters in the same building, now renamed Casa Presei Libere ("The House of the Free Press"). The Bucharest Stock Exchange is located in the southern wing.

References

  1. ^ Dicţionarul Enciclopedic Romîn, 1962
  2. ^ România Liberă. "Epilog la o statuie". 4 March 1990.