The "Arany János" Memorial Museum is housed in the oldest building in Salonta, in the Ciunt Tower. The watchtower was built from the ruins of buildings (churches) destroyed around the city. In 1658, in order to defend the fortress from the Turkish invasion, Rákóczi György II ordered the city to be abandoned and the fortifications set on fire. The name under which it is known today, the Ciunt Tower, is due to the fact that for a period of 240 years it remained without a roof. The Ciunt Tower Museum is also over a hundred years old. Arany László, the son of the great poet, with generous support, tried to promote the perpetuation of his father's memory i...n his hometown, both spiritually and financially. He donated to the museum all the furniture, the academic office in Budapest, some clothes and several small and personal things, the library, the manuscripts. Between 1885 and 1889, the collection was arranged in a classroom of the General School in Salonta. With the financial support of the poet's son, the renovation of the tower began in 1898. The restoration work was carried out by Veres Károly, according to the project of the architect Gyulas Laszló. The opening took place on August 27, 1899, as part of a grand national ceremony. In 1907 the access to the tower moved from the south side to the west side and on September 15 in the niche above the new entrance is the stone statue of Arany Janos, executed by Kolozsvári Szeszák Ferenc after the project of Strobl Alajos. On the occasion of the bicentennial of the great poet's birth, the renovation of the building and the entire collection began, with the support of the Petőfi Literary Museum in Budapest. In 2018, the new exhibition was opened in front of visitors. An introduction to the history of the city of Salonta is presented on the ground floor. The first floor tells the life of the great poet, Arany János, the second floor is an art gallery, including portraits and paintings about the poet, the third floor restores the atmosphere of his office with his personal furniture, and the fourth floor, in addition to toys designed for all ages, you can admire the wonderful view of the city.
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