The Manor Inn, one of the oldest remaining secular buildings in Moldova, was built in an earlier period, namely at the end of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th century, with the ground floor of the building and the cellars dating from that period, in while the floor was added later.
Oral tradition has preserved the name "Royal Inn," which reflects one of the building's oldest functions. In the past, it was used either to receive messengers or diplomats at the royal court, or as a more secluded place for meetings and parties of the nobles at court. There are indications that even the rulers spent their time here together with their guests and courtiers after the famous hunts in the forests of Suceva.
The documents of the time confirm the visits of the Emperor Joseph II, who was hosted here in June 1783 and then in July 1786. During the reign of Franz Josef I, large hunts were organized in the forests of Bucovina in which numerous archdukes and members of the house of Austria. During one such hunt in 1880, Emperor Franz Josef I slept in the Royal Inn.
The ground floor of the Royal Inn consists of four vaulted rooms arranged around a central vaulted corridor, and the wall arches are lost in this structure, paved with quarry stone, to facilitate the entry of carriages. From this corridor you can access the two cellars dug in steps, with a surface that considerably exceeds the dimensions of the building.
On the ground floor is the room that, over the centuries, was used as a kitchen.
The museum houses some of the folk art treasures of this ancient and legendary Romanian region. The upper floor, substantially changed in the last hundred years due to the various destinations it had, was restored together with the entire building in the period 1964-1967, regaining the appearance indicated by the traces discovered in the walls. The four rooms are arranged on two perpendicular corridors. The restorers, guided by the traces of the consoles of the outer walls, restored the wooden balconies of the building, made of solid oak, and restored the frames of the windows on the ground floor. The roof, made of beautifully shaped tiles, maintains its original appearance.
On the ground floor, three of the rooms recreate the atmosphere of the rooms in the homes of Bucovina villages. The "big house" exhibits basic elements, such as the bed covered with a "poclada" (macat) of white linen with colorful stripes, cushions covered in multi-layered fabrics and with "picks" in geometric patterns. On the wall, the stack or "dowry" is placed with an exquisite alternation of volumes and colors. The interior exudes warmth and hospitality, enhanced by the traditional geometric patterns lining the wall next to the bed, and another with "ages" (stripes), both of which have vegetal hues. The wipes with "picks" and the rugs arranged in the upper part of the walls complete the ensemble in a vibrant palette, but harmoniously balanced with the sobriety of the furniture.
The richness of the fabrics is the distinctive feature of the household interior in the north of Moldova.
The chest-table and dowry boxes, with the shine of the metal on the wood carved in geometric motifs and the balance of proportions, attract the attention of visitors for a long time.
The double policy, made of fir wood and decorated with rosettes that follow one another with anthropomorphic motifs, stylized with a precision acquired only through the practice of passing down entire generations, is a unique example appreciated and detailed by numerous specialists from other countries on the occasion of the exhibition from Munich since 1974, part of the "Arta lemnului romani" exhibition.
The storage room, in which objects and tools needed in everyday life are exhibited, presents pieces such as the pives for adding the wheat, carved from a tree trunk, the "dimerlia" for measuring grains, made of linden bark, the net of braided hemp for fishing, polonicas of various sizes, the "braiul" for "breaking" the curdled milk, with the tail beautifully carved in steps, as well as the wooden "tarnita" (saddle) with ornaments spread over the entire surface, created using various techniques (engraving, pyrogravure and sculpture).
The third room reconstructed in the museum is the kitchen, where an impressive hearth, built according to the needs of an inn, occupies about a quarter of the space. (Traditionally, the ratio of hearth to room remains unchanged, i.e. 1/3).
Source: Bucharest-Suceava and in Northern Moldova (Ministry of Tourism, 1977)
