The Romanian name of the major cultural landmark in Iasi is "Bojdeuca Ion Creanga", which could be translated as "small and poor old house". The memorial house on Simion Barnutiu Street is by all means a work of art and piece of history, yet it is surely not very impressive. Small and old, it still stands due to the ambitious and complicated restorations. It is the first literary museum opened in Romanian and one of the 12 objectives which make up the Museum of Romanian Literature in Iasi.
Fortunatelly placed in the old part of the city, in a space that hasn't changed much since the 19th century, keeping almost intact it's charm, despited it being rather close to the center of Iasi, this memorial house is amazing. Ion Creanga (1837 - 1889), one of the masters of Romanian literature, lived here from 1872 to 1889, when he would also pass away in this very house, on December 31st. He chose this place for several reasons. First of all, it was affordable. Most important, it was a place like he used to have in his home village, a house which wasn't very large or elegant, but provided him the traditional confort that he strongly valued. A place to live and work, and still kept today as it was in the 19th century, wih all of the furniture and original objects. It has two small rooms and it opens towards the hills, all of the elements being well preserved.
This memorial house was opened for the public on April 15th 1918 as the very first literary museum of Romania. Up until then, especially after the writer's death, it had been visited by admirers and journalists, quickly turning into one of the main atractions in Iasi, due to the incresing popularity of the creations signed by Ion Creanga. Since then, the original construction had been restored and taken for, the biggest restoration being made in 1933 - 1934. In the 1960's the collection of documents of the memorial hous ein Iasi, together with the documents from the Ion Creanga Museum at the Golia Church in Iasi were put together for a splendid exhibiton. This first large presentation of Creanga's works and life in the memorial house was more than successful. It was a chance to discover first hand documents, photographs, personal objects and so on.
After 1984, due to the success of this touristic and cultural landmark, the memorial house and the ground surrounding it went into an ambitious plan of reconstruction and changing : a new building was finished, destined to house the collection of documents, a large hall was especially built for events and a brand new library was opened. Also, the museum of reorganised and restored, as the curators tried to recapture all of the original aspect and charm, using only original objects and pieces of furniture. Among the most interesting exhibits are several portraits of the writer and his second wife ; the writing tools used by Creanga, as well as his clock and cigarette-case ; the collection of old Romanian carpets. In the new building visitors have the chance of seeing the exhibition of books, documents, manuscripts and photographs which present the life of the artist, from his very first literary experiments to his later works. Some of the best and rarest objects are the few magazines where he published, some of his personal books, a few original documents and manuscripts or letters.
It is the most popular museum of Iasi and certainly the most visited cultural landmark in the city.
2008-02-12
