bg Ruse

Former Simeonov Brothers Bank Building

- Dobri Nemirov Street 1 -
The entrepreneuring brothers Ivanitsa and Stefan Simeonov bought the site of Mustafa Bey in the city center and decided to build the building of their Bulgarian Commercial Bank there. The construction of the building was completed in 1895 and was designed by the Armenian architect . Stefan Simeonov, as director of the Bulgarian Commercial Bank, was involved in dangerous financial operations related to the construction of multiple railway lines. This provoked vigorous protests from Western investors because some of the routes will allow traffic to bypass the Franco-British Eastern Railway. The government was soon forced to back down and freeze construction, which led to the bankruptcy of the Simeonov Brothers. The bank was on the verge of bankruptcy for almost a decade.

In 1948 the Ruse Popular Bank and two other banks merge into the National Cooperative Bank. Three years later, with a decree of the Council of Ministers, the bank became a branch of the Bulgarian National Bank, which finally terminated its existence.
An old photo showing the building
The scaly sheet metal mansard roof, of the Neo-Classical and Neo-Baroque building, contains a total of nine dormers, three of which are located in the dome like structure. On top of these dome like structures, you'll be able to see that it's decorated with . Now, if you look a bit further down you'll see that the dormer is decorated with two female sculptures that are leaning on a beautifully decorated garland wreath. This same dormer is also decorated with and two foliage that start growing from a . The two dormers that are crowned with a pointed are adorned with a , as well as some . The six smaller dormers are topped with a and are flanked by .

Underneath the roof , you'll be able to see two different sized , and where the with Composite end, you'll see two supportive . Above the windows, on the third floor, you can either see a straight, a segmental, or a broken pointed pediment. A laurel wreath is placed within the segmental pediment, which contains a of the Greek god . A small balcony is placed underneath some of the windows on the third and second floor, which are secured with a stone balustrade. The balconies are supported by two corbels that are embellished with foliage. A beautiful of a daisy is placed on the bottom of each of the balconies.

Between the windows on the second floor, as well as on both sides of the main entrance door, you'll be able to see a . A swan neck pediment can be admired on both sides of the building, which is adorned with a richly decorated . The that are located underneath these windows are decorated with four guttae each. A female mascaron is placed on the main facade, which is adorned with a and is flanked by two decorative vases. One floor down you'll see a broken swan neck pediment within its midst a lavishly decorated cartouche. Some of the windows on the first floor still contain the original wooden frames and wrought iron barred windows.
The mascaron of the Greek god Hermes