A note from "King Carol I Memoirs" mentions that, by 1875, "the villa of Prince Dimitrie Ghica, President of the Administration, and the one of the War Minister, general lon Em. Florescu, shall be the first to be completed on the valley. Florescu Villa, also known as Ştirbei, (consequentially to the marriage of the general to Alina Ştirbei) is, therefore, a very beautiful heritage palace and one of the first villas build in town, established in 1875.
By the end of the XIX century, the Ştirbei domain included this wonderful building as well as the Chapel in the backyard, painted by Gheorghe Tättärescu. Until the middle of the XX century, there was a beautiful lake in front of the building, replaced then by Hotel Montana.
Florescu-Ştirbei villa served, for several years, as town's Public Library. Then, between 1955-1990, during the communist regime, it functioned as a center for Pioneers and Country's Young Eagles (former communist organization for children).
For other ten years, the building was designated to host the town's Treasury. Starting with 2013, it has been renovated in order to become The Museum of Sinaia.
