Pécs
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Situated in the South-Transdanubian Region, at the foot of the Mecsek Mountain Range, Pécs is the seat of Baranya County and the region’s cultural, educational and financial centre. One of Hungary’s most pleasant cities, with its historic monuments, museums, cultural and artistic festivals, it is one of the region’s main tourist destinations.
The group of early-Christian burial vaults dating from the 4th to the 6th centuries, which once formed part of the cemetery of the Roman city of Sopianae, are, since 2000, on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Parts of the city’s protective wall, completed in the 15th century, can still be found in numerous places.
Pécs has a unique Ottoman-Turkish legacy. The mosque of Kászim Gázi Pasha, which can be found in the main square of the city, is the largest remaining Turkish monument in Hungary; it now functions as a Roman-Catholic parish church. The Hasszán Jákováli Mosque serves both as a museum, and as a place of worship. There are also remnants of Idrisz Baba’s Tomb, and Mehmi Pasha’s Baths, still to be seen.
Pécs also has more Christian monuments, among which the Bishop’s Cathedral, built between the 11th and 12th centuries, stands out ; the Bishopric was established in 1009 by King István.
Hungary’s first university was founded in Pécs, in 1367.
Of its numerous museums the most important ones are the Vasarely Museum, the Csontváry Museum and the Schaár Museum.
Zsolnai porcelain is a famous product of Pécs. The Zsolnai factory site, including its buildings, is being developed as a cultural-quarter for 2010, when Pécs assumes the role of European Cultural Capital (Pécs2010).