Do you know the famous personalities of Košice? Discover the historical stories of the city
Let yourself be surprised by historical tidbits about the city of Košice. Intriguing history and exciting stories are written on every corner of the city, on the facades and balconies of the famous buildings of the conservation area, in picturesque courtyards and in the bowels of the town houses, once and now inhabited by the old townspeople.
Sensitive words of the Hungarian writer
Born right at the beginning of the millennium, Sándor Márai from Košice is still the city's writerly pride and a legacy of the former glory of the bourgeois society of the First Republic. As a journalist, poet, translator and screenwriter, he devoted himself mainly to novels and short stories, which made him one of the most important figures of 20th-century European literature. His works such as Košice errand / Košice townspeople, Heaven and Earth, Earth, Earth!... and The Rebels still find their fans everywhere in the world.
Traces of the author's life can be found in several places in Košice. It is especially worth a visit Sándor Marai's memorial exhibition in a house on Mäsiarska Street, where you can get to know his written work quite closely. See the details of the original furniture and get to know this native of Košice through texts, quotes, photographs and information about his closest persons, Lola and Géza Radvanyi. In addition to the exhibition, there is also a sculptural portrait of the writer in the vicinity of Mäsiarska and Zbrojnicna Streets. Sit on a bench in front of Sándor, ideally with his works from local bookstores, and immerse yourself in a quiet dialogue! The exhibition is currently closed for renovation.
And finally - in Košice we honour Marais in several places. Plan a delicious lunch or dinner at the eponymous Márai Bistro right in front of the entrance to the St. Elisabeth Cathedral with fantastic Hungarian and Slovak delicacies such as Szeged-style fish soup with catfish fillet, classic chicken paprikash, homemade gnocchi and special Márai pancakes.
Pastel figure of the art world and Košice modernism
Get to know a personality who deserves your admiration and exploration of the city's institutions - the Slovak painter Július Jakoby, with a distinctive artistic heritage in Košice and other Slovak galleries and museums, is a representative of Košice Modernism and Expressionism. From his studies at the Budapest Academy of Fine Arts in the late 1920s until his death in 1981, Jakoby never stopped creating and taking an interest in the artistic face of the city. Moreover, in 1934 he won the Košice City Prize for his work Reclining Female Nude and in 1968 he was recognized as a Meritorious Artist.
You can get acquainted with Jakoby's work right in the city centre. Visit the first regional gallery in Slovakia, East Slovak Gallery with two locations on Hlavná and Alžbetina Streets, where you can explore Jakoby's impressive works for yourself. In addition to the permanent exhibitions, the gallery offers a rich cultural programme for all, such as creative workshops, engaging guided tours, a children's VSG mini workshop and a design shop. The works of this exceptional artist will also be waiting for you in the Museum of Vojtech Löfflerwhich regularly organises exhibitions of contemporary art, drawing workshops and attractive concerts in the museum courtyard.
You will also get closer to Jakoby in the presence of a larger-than-life portrait on an errand along Alžbetina Street by the academic sculptor Juraj Bartusz. Stop in front of him, gaze into his eyes and take a close look at this unique work of Slovak modern sculpture, created between 1977-1980.
Author of a technical work of (literally) world proportions
The city of Košice is not only associated with artistic directions and cultural institutions - find out more about the development of science and technology, which has positively influenced the infrastructure of the whole world and maritime travel. Did you know that Main Street, right next to the Lower Gate, is home to the author of the world's largest canal?
Hungarian designer and Hungarian engineer Vojtech Gerster is the author of the Corinth Canal's engineering design and co-designer of the Panama Canal. It is hard to believe that it was a native of Košice, with his birthplace on Hlavna Street No. 9, who was responsible for such a huge engineering feat and who has forever immortalised Košice in the field of international technological history. Stop in front of his house and read the information board about the work as you stroll through the city.
Continue your pilgrimage to the technological achievements of a bygone age and centuries past in Slovak Technical Museum 88 Hlavná Street, where you can learn more about metallurgy, astronomy, metallurgy, artistic blacksmithing, electricity, dental technology and the history of physics. Other interesting exhibitions, not only with a technical focus, can also be found in the premises and various branches of the Eastern Slovak Museum.
More information on our website in the section History and monuments a Culture and art.