bg Ruse

Ivan Simeonov House

- Bratya Simeonovi Street 26 -
When the Armenian architect built the bank of the Simeonov brothers, the banker Ivan Simeonov was so impressed that he immediately commissioned him to design his own house. The construction of this house was finished in 1895. Ivan, together with his brother Stefan were among the wealthiest and most influential figures in Bulgaria in the 19th century. The home of Ivan and Maria Simeonov hosted impressive receptions, balls, and carnivals. After the death of Ivan Simeonov, his wife Maria sold the house to the Catholic Bishop .

He transformed into a Catholic boarding house for the Notre Dame de Sion French Lyceum and Santa Maria School. After the political changes in 1944, the building was confiscated in favor of the state. It was used as a children's music school and dormitory of the English High School, the Russian Anthem Zia, and for a short time it was used by the Historical Museum. In 1992, ownership of the house was transferred back to the Catholic eparchy.
Ivan Simeonov and his family in front of their house
The detached building is built in the styles of Neo-Renaissance and Neo-Baroque. The scaly sheet metal mansard roof contains two types of dormers and lion head on each of the corners. Underneath the roof , you can see a beautiful pattern decorated with foliage, as well as some pairs of . The protruded , which give the building a nice multi-dimensional touch, are in some places decorated with . Above some of the windows, you'll be able to see a straight . In the center of the open pediment, you can admire a beautifully decorated , which is surrounded by a , and on the pediment itself, you can see two decorative vases. The two supportive corbels underneath the windowsills, as well as the above the basement windows, are adorned with acanthus foliage. Above the main entrance on the north side of the building, you'll see an stating Католическата Никополска Епархията (The Catholic Diocese of Nikopol).
Damian Theelen, Angelo Roncalli and Kiril Kurtev with the priests of the Diocese of Nicopolis in Ruse in 1930.