Interiors of Buda Castle - Old Ceremonial Rooms

Old Ceremonial Rooms

• Ballroom (Nagyterem) - The ballroom (or Large Throne Room) on the first floor of the Baroque wing had several layers of Baroque decoration from the second half of the 18th and the 19th century. There are only two surviving drawings that record the oldest form of the room. Jakob Schmutzer's drawing from 1777 shows the opening ceremony of the university after it was moved to the palace. It seems that the room had a Late Baroque decoration with double grooved Corinthian pilasters between the windows and stucco garlands. The walls were decorated with Vinzenz Fischer's frescoes of the four faculties. József Pollencig's drawing from 1795 shows a ball scene in the "Prunksaal". The pilasters were kept but the frescoes were already covered, and the whole room was stuccoed. On the vault the coat-of-arms of the Kingdom of Hungary can be seen. After the destruction of the 1849 siege the room was redecorated in Neo-Baroque style. In 1892 the old ballroom was rebuilt with a new ceiling and a gallery towards the Lions Court but three of its side walls were preserved. It was enlarged again after 1896. In Hauszmann's time the room had a Rococo white-golden stucco decoration with three huge chandeliers. During the post-war reconstruction Vinzenz Fischer's frescoes were re-discovered in 1953. In spite of this all the decoration layers were destroyed. Today it houses the Gothic altar collection of the Hungarian National Gallery.
• White Antechamber (Fehér előterem) - The White Antechamber on the first floor of the Baroque wing was situated south of the ballroom. In the Baroque era it was called Zweyten Antichambre ("second antechamber"). In Hauszmann's time it had a Rococo white-golden stucco decoration with one huge chandelier and a white Rococo stove.
• "Coronation" Antechamber ("Koronázás" előterem) - The "Coronation" Antechamber on the first floor of the Baroque wing was situated next to the white antechamber. It opened from the main staircase of the southern wing and was the first room of the ceremonial apartments on this side. In Hauszmann's time it had a white-golden stucco decoration with one huge chandelier. Its name referred to the huge painting of Franz Joseph I's coronation as King of Hungary after the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867.
• Audience Antechamber (Fogadási váróterem) - The Audience Antechamber on the first floor of the Baroque wing was situated north of the ballroom. In the Baroque era it was called Antichambre Ihrer Majestat der Kaiserin ("Her Majesty the Empress' Antechamber"). During that time, the room gave access to Maria Theresa's private apartments from the ballroom. In the Hauszmann era the audience antechamber became part of the ceremonial apartments and had the same white-golden Rococo stucco decoration as the white antechamber on the other side.
• "Zenta" Antechamber ("Zenta" előterem) - The "Zenta" Antechamber on the first floor of the Baroque wing was situated next to the audience antechamber. It opened from the main staircase of the central wing and was the first room of the ceremonial apartments on this side. In Hauszmann's time it had a white-golden stucco decoration with one huge chandelier. Its name referred to the huge painting of the Battle of Zenta.