Appointed Governor of the Principality of Transylvania, a position that he occupied between 1777 and 1787, Samuel von Brukenthal built a Late Baroque palace in Sibiu, modelled on the palaces in the imperial capital. The Brukenthal Palace is one of the most significant Baroque buildings in Romania, its construction taking place between the years 1778 and 1788. The building was raised to serve as the Baron’s official residence and a worthy display case for his collections. Brukenthal Palace and the collections put together by Baron Samuel von Brukenthal represent the nucleus of the present Brukenthal National Museum – the first museum opened to the public on today’s Romanian territories through the testamentary dispositions of hid founder. The main façade of the building, juts out from the front line of other buildings in the square, and was built later, in a more restrained Baroque style. The central element of the façade is the stone framing of the gate, supported by columns and a projecting entablature. It is decorated with carved elements, such as the gilded coat of arms of Samuel von Brukenthal, as well as other Baroque features: urns, rosettes, festoons.
