Location and site

Founded by German craftsmen and merchants known as the Saxons of Transylvania, Sighişoara is a fine example of a small, fortified medieval town which played an important strategic and commercial role on the fringes of central Europe for several centuries.

Urban morphology

The historic centre of Sighisoara is made up of the Citadel – a fortified site situated on the mound with rather steep slopes that dominates the Târnava Valley and the Low City – situated at its foot. This aspect gives to the site a very special urban configuration deriving from adapting the habitat to the forms of relief. The tight relationship that was established between the human habitat and the surroundings is expressed by the peculiar outline of a most picturesque view of the Târnava Mare river bank.

The adaptation of Sighisoara to the specific configuration of the relief has led to a wide range of plans and structures of the urban spaces and of the construction designs (Hermann Oberth Square). Balanced proportions and the stress on the main axes define the specific city structure. Two patterns of urbanism confer to the city a special expressivity. Except the original urban structure (street network, plot system), in the historic centre of Sighisoara the mediaeval constructions have been preserved intact: the dwelling sites due to historical periods – 15th – 19th centuries, representative public buildings and the precinct – walls and towers.

Registration criteria

Criterion (iii): Sighisoara is an outstanding testimony to the culture of the Transylvanian Saxons, a culture that is coming to a close after 850 years and will continue to exist only through its architectural and urban monuments.

Criterion (v): Sighisoara is an outstanding example of a small fortified city in the border region between the Latin-oriented culture of central Europe and the Byzantine-Orthodox culture of south-eastern Europe. The apparently unstoppable process of emigration by the Saxons, the social stratum which had formed and upheld the cultural traditions of the region, threatens the survival of their architectural heritage as well.

Historical reference

• During the entire history of this city, its historic center has been the vital core of the habitat that developed around the Low City.

Source : https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/902/ / http://www.cimec.ro/