PHOTO: What one of the most famous boulevards in Alba Iulia looked like during communism. Rare archival footage

What one of the most famous boulevards in Alba Iulia looked like during communism is a question we answer with some rare, archival photos.

It is about Transilvaniei Boulevard, easily recognizable, even if in the meantime, many buildings have appeared between the blocks and on the side of the facades.

The images are in the Urbis Alba Iulia Memory archive. In them you can see the famous Loto Prono block, as it was called because of the large letters on the roof,

You can also see the straight lines in which the sidewalks and green spaces were built and the alignment of the buildings along its entire length.

It is worth noting the remote area where the Orthodox church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit, built later, and the hills without houses, planted with vines, are missing.

Basically, the city ended there: the neighborhoods of houses that appeared especially after 1989 were missing.

See also on the same topic: Rare photo of Transilvaniei Boulevard in Alba Iulia in 1977. The tower blocks were under construction. Where does the city “end”.

“The accelerated process of industrialization also implied intense urbanization. Consequently, the appearance of the city changed, the emblematic building being the block of flats, multiplied in dozens and hundreds of copies, in several neighborhoods.

The small apartments were very similar inside, and outside the buildings were lined up in a uniform arrangement, which perfectly corresponded to the communist aesthetics and symbolism.

“Cetate”, “Ampoi” and “Tolstoi” block districts they were all built after 1965the local authorities being proud of them…” reported those from Memoria Urbis.

Another very rare photo was posted some time ago on Facebook by the administrators of the “Discover Alba Iulia” group.

In the foreground are two children playing, and in the background you can see the building of the Dacia cinema and the ten-story block next to it, then under construction.

Photo sources: Memoria Urbis, Discover Alba Iulia