“BABA PUSTA” CASTLE – Aleksa Šantić

“BABA PUSTA” CASTLE – Aleksa Šantić

The castle of Karolj Fernbah, better known in literature as “Baba Pusta”, was built by Karolj Fernbah in 1906–1907, based on the design of the Hungarian architect Hikisch Rezső. The castle is located about ten kilometers south of the village center, on an estate formerly known as Tovlaj. It is called Baba Pusta because it was built in honor of the owner’s wife, Dora, affectionately nicknamed “baba,” meaning “doll” in Hungarian.

The castle is situated in the center of what is now an overgrown park, once designed in the style of English gardens. It is a freestanding building with a rectangular elongated plan. On the main entrance facade, there is a portico and a square bell tower rising above the roofline of the main building. The building’s plan forms an elongated rectangle with a square portico on the main facade.

A small family chapel with a semicircular apse and cupola is unusually located in the left wing of the ground floor. The building’s functional layout is clear in the plan and room arrangement, while the interior design features a restrained stylistic and ornamental repertoire—wood, marble, glass (fireplaces, stoves, reliefs, stained glass, and wall paintings). The architect skillfully combined contemporary Art Nouveau principles with the owner’s needs.

This site is notable for the planting of the first ginkgo tree in this part of Europe, alongside many other exotic and rare plant species from around the world, including Virginia juniper, black walnut, red-leaved maple, larches, plane trees, Caucasian wingnut, and more.

Today, the castle is in very poor condition, and the park is overgrown. The building is rapidly deteriorating, partly due to the removal of free construction materials. Half of the roof has disappeared without a trace, and it seems the other half has already been intended for removal. The castle is a registered cultural monument.

The castle is not open to visitors.

 

www.dvorci.info

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