Sibiu, Romania/sibiu003

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Here is another example of the German architecture of Sibiu. Note the five Gaubenfenster on the building on the left, examples of the famous "eyes of Hermannstadt" that peer down on pedestrians below. Visitors from western Europe in the 1800s were flabbergasted to find such an outpost of German architecture and culture so far east on the European continent. Sibiu was founded as "Hermannstadt" in 1190 by German settlers, and in fact is still commonly called by this German name. Even today common street signs are in both Romanian and German. (The Hungarians called it Nagyzseben when the city was part of their country). The church in the background is the Evangelical Cathedral (Evangelische Stadtpfarrkirche; Biserica Evanghelica).