The Bulgarian Cultural Center from Calafat is hosted in the Palace Marincu.
The building was built up between the years 1905 – 1907 by Ștefan Marincu, mayor of Calafat in the period 1911 – 1914, who came from a wealth family who came across many values. The palace was built up in the memory of his daughter, Marioara, who only at 13 years of age died of TBC, after his first daughter also – Olga, died at only one year of age of meningitis TBC.
It was built in the eclectic style of the period, French neoclassicism, with accents of baroque and rococo, according to the plans of the French architect Paul Gottereau, who also executed the Royal Palace, the Palace Cotroceni, the Palace of “Jean Mihail” from Craiova, the building of the House of Economies and Consignations Bucharest, and the one who supervised the works was the architect Constantin Rogalski.
Ștefan Marincu was a good financer, he founded the “Bank of Calaft” (1901), he occupied himself of the bargainers and of the grand leaseholders, he became a member in the Chamber of Commerce from Craiova and mayor of Calafat (1911 – 1914).
The palace has almost 50 rooms and a surface of 8.333 square meters on three levels and cost in the three years a million in golden coins. The principal construction, basement, hoch – ground floor, first floor and tower, numbered 48 rooms with different destination. For effectively living there were 11 rooms at hoch – ground floor all facing the grand lobby, 4 at the first floor, 6 at the basement. There was installed the electric light, central heating, elevator for the transportation of the food from the kitchen in the basement at the living room from the hoch – ground floor, running water.
The annexed buildings were: the house of the door keeper with 3 rooms and the house from the right side of the courtyard, with a first floor. Downstairs there were the stables and the garages, upstairs there were eight rooms for personal living. Adjacent in the courtyard there were the coops and the icery; there also was a greenhouse built of steel and windows, which are functioning even in the present. It was situated in the garden from the back of the palace which had not only flowers, but also orchards. In the green house there were exotic trees: lemon tree, citrus tree, orange tree, and many other types of palm trees.
The exterior and interior decorations were owed to the Italian constructing engineer Pietro Adotti. He came with his team of jack planes, stucco, painters, fittings, carpenters, cabinet makers. They worked for three years at the palace. The marble was brought from Italy, white as the snow, with different irizations in its flesh, a rose, green, red, bloody, cream bois. Outside the massive steel doors there appeared the crystal windows with the monogram of the owners filigreed in the cornice, and the stairs which climbed towards the interior are glazed, milky. Developed in a fan, they are margined by the golden lacing of the balustrades. They are reflected glowingly in two Murano mirrors. The parallels, fixed in the golden frames from the lateral wall of the entrée, advance its dimensions – a lacing cornice contours its ceiling. From its central medallion, bloomed as a lotus, hangs a candelabrum with eight arched arms, gilted, supporting in crystal cups the candle flames and the tears of the transparent pandeloques, a gracious luminous arabesque, also multiplies infinitely in the depth of the mirrors.
For the salons, the furniture of Louis XIV or Louis XVI style, the tapestry Aubusson, the carpets of Savonnerie, were brought from France.
Only in the Romanian room there was laid down a beautiful bark from Oltenia. In the oriental rooms there were the carpets of Șiraz and Tabriz, inestimable, Turkish shawls, expensive weapons, and low tables incrusted with pearl.
