Wenckheim-palota, Budapest

Wenckheim Palace is a historic building that now houses the central library of the Metropolitan Szabó Ervin Library, on Szabó Ervin Square in Budapest VIII District. Its setting is grand, but its story is practical: Count Frigyes Wenckheim had it built for family visits and for balls and social occasions. The palace was constructed from 1886 to 1889 in a neo-Baroque manner enriched with Renaissance details, while its interiors also draw on Rococo and Biedermeier traditions.

Artúr Meinig designed it, and Jungfer Gyula produced the wrought-iron grilles, gates and candelabras. The entrance gates visible here were completed in 1897. After the count’s death, his heirs sold the building to the capital in 1927.

Following a four-year conversion, it reopened to the public in 1931 as a municipal library. Today, the grand rooms serve readers rather than aristocratic guests.