The house on Mihai Eminescu Street no. 48 is one of the oldest buildings in Slatina, being registred in the list of historical monuments of Olt county.
Appeared from ancient times, the settlement on the Valley of Sopot, due to the natural growth rate of the population and of opportunities created by the crossing of important trade routes from Slatina (“wax path”, “sheep” or “Buti”), expands on neighboring hills and to Olt Valley.
The byzantine, Venetian, Serbian coin findings from centuries XI – XIII justify the commercial importance of the settlement, even before its first documentary mention.
The first reference to the name of Slatina is on January 20, 1368, in the commercial privilege granted by Vladislav I Vlaicu to merchants from Brasov, as a place of internal customs at the first ford of plain of the Olt, obligatory point of passage of chariots with goods across Olt river.
There are divided opinions about the origin of the name of the town. A first version suggests that the name Slatina is of Slavic origin, derived from the words “slam” (earth) and “tina” (salty); thus the name would translate as “salt land”, “salter food”, “salt water”, referring to the river Olt. This hypothesis appears to be motivated by the Slavic toponymy of some areas within the city and of surroundings, as well as some nearby localities (Obrocari – today Tudor Vladimirescu Street, Hill Grădiştea, Clocociov, Dobrotinet, Milcov, Brebeni, Sopot, Teslui etc.). Also in favor of this hypothesis come the records of historian A.D. Xenopol, who speaks about the Slavs as migratory population.
A second hypothesis claims that the city’s name comes from the archaic Latin “Salaatina”, “Salatina”, “Slatina” – thus resulting that the city of Slatina bears the name of the Roman colony that once was installed here.
The buildings that make up the historical heritage play the main role in the urban landscape of the old city center. They are located on Lipscani Street and Mihai Eminescu Street, on both sides. In total there are 81 structures, built between 1860 to 1938 in one of the following styles: neo-Gothic, neo-Romanian, modern, art nouveau, art deco and renovation of various periods. Most buildings have at the ground floor, commercial premises and upstairs a residential space.