# Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj

[Romania](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/attractions) › [Oltenia](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/region/oltenia) › [Gorj County](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/county/gorj) › [Curtișoara](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/locality/curtisoara)

> Open-air museum at Curtișoara, near Bumbești-Jiu: over 30 wooden peasant houses from all over Gorj, the Tătărescu ensemble, churches and folk installations, next to the Cornoiu Kula.

**At a glance:** Museums and memorial houses in Curtișoara, Gorj County. Opening hours: daily 09:00 – 17:00. The visit takes 1 – 1½ hours. Information verified on 21 October 2026.

## Key facts

- **Opening hours:** daily 09:00 – 17:00 — Daily, 9:00–17:00, according to the museum's official page. These hours do not apply to the Cornoiu Kula, which is private property. Check by phone before travelling.
- **Visit duration:** 1 – 1½ hours — open-air museum village
- **With kids:** Yes — plenty of space, outdoors
- **Parking:** Yes, free — next to the museum gate
- **Best season:** April – October — the visit is mostly outdoors
- **Address:** DJ665, ~10 km north of Târgu Jiu, Curtișoara, Gorj County
- **Coordinates:** 45.10656, 23.35617
- **Phone:** +40 745 638 350
- **Website:** https://www.muzeugorj.ro/sectii/muzeul-arhitecturii-populare-din-gorj-curtisoara/
- **Wikipedia:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_Popular_Architecture_of_Gorj
- **Wikidata:** https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q12736075
- **Categories:** [Museums and memorial houses](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/muzee-si-case-memoriale), [Villages and traditions](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/sate-si-traditii)

## About Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj

At Curtișoara, a village belonging to the town of Bumbești-Jiu some 10 km north of Târgu Jiu, the Gorj County Museum has gathered a museum village of more than 30 old wooden houses and farmsteads from all over the county: carved porches, river-stone cellars, tall shingle roofs, corn cribs and peasant installations. The buildings were taken down in their home villages and rebuilt here to show how people lived in the Gorj foothills between the 18th and 20th centuries.

The museum began in 1968 with an exhibition in the Cornoiu Kula and was inaugurated in 1975 on the old estate of the Cornoiu family, around the kula and the stone church built by Bălașa Cornoiu in 1821. In 2000–2002 the Tătărescu ensemble was brought here from Poiana, near Rovinari: the kula-house of former prime minister Gheorghe Tătărescu and the family's wooden church. In 2006 a court ruling returned part of the land, kula included, to the heirs of its interwar owner.

The Cornoiu Kula, an 18th-century fortified boyar house on three levels, stands on a terrace above the Jiu valley, with thick walls, cellars with massive oak doors and an arcaded porch on the top floor. It is one of the Oltenian kulas that have been on the UNESCO Tentative List since 1991, though it is not a World Heritage Site.

### What you can see

The paths lead among farmsteads with houses raised on high stone foundations, with lookout porches and outside timber staircases, and among cellars, corn cribs and carved gates. The oldest house is the Popa Udriște House, from 1802. The Tătărescu ensemble has the kula-house guarded by stone lions and the wooden church dedicated to St George. There is also the stone church of St John the Baptist, the water mill and the fulling mill for homespun cloth.

### Good to know

The Cornoiu Kula no longer belongs to the museum: since 2006 it has been private property; it was restored by its owners and opened to visitors in 2019, but the museum does not publish its hours, so entry to the kula is not guaranteed with the museum ticket.

## Don't miss

- The Cornoiu Kula, an 18th-century fortified boyar house with an arcaded porch on the top floor, on the terrace above the Jiu valley.
- The Tătărescu ensemble, with the former prime minister's kula-house and the wooden church of St George, brought from Poiana in 2000–2002.
- The Popa Udriște House, from 1802, the oldest house in the museum.
- The stone church of St John the Baptist, founded by Bălașa Cornoiu in 1821.
- The water mill and the fulling mill for homespun cloth, peasant installations driven by water.

## Good to know before you go

### Getting there

**By car:** from Târgu Jiu take the DN67 (Calea București), then the town's eastern bypass northwards and the DJ665 to Curtișoara: ~13 km, ~20 minutes. From Petroșani, drive down the DN66 through the Jiu Gorge: ~52 km, ~1 h 30. From Craiova, take the DN6 and DN66 towards Târgu Jiu: ~120 km, ~2 h 20.

**Public transport:** the nearest railway stations are Târgu Jiu and Bumbești, the latter ~6 km from the museum, on the line to Petroșani; from there a taxi is the simplest option. No direct bus link to the museum is published.

### Where to park

There is no official information about parking; visitors usually stop next to the museum gate, beside the DJ665.

### Fees & discounts

Tickets are sold at the entrance or online, on the Gorj County Museum's website. The museum is also part of the Gorj Tourist Pass, the combined ticket for ten museum sections in the county. Prices are not shown on the museum's page; check by phone before travelling.

### Rules

The visit follows the paths of an open-air museum: do not touch the objects inside the houses, and smoking and open flames are forbidden, as almost all the buildings are wooden. In wet weather the grass and the timber stairs can be slippery. The Cornoiu Kula is private property and can only be visited when its owners open it.

### Facilities

open-air museum · tickets at the entrance and online · included in the Gorj Tourist Pass

## Details

- **Collection type:** ethnography, folk architecture
- **Local character:** Gorj folk architecture
- **Crafts:** woodworking

## Frequently asked questions about Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj

**What are the opening hours of Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj?**

Opening hours at Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj: daily 09:00 – 17:00. Daily, 9:00–17:00, according to the museum's official page. These hours do not apply to the Cornoiu Kula, which is private property. Check by phone before travelling.

**How long does a visit to Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj take?**

A visit to Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj takes about 1 – 1½ hours (open-air museum village).

**Can you visit Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj with kids?**

Yes, Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj is suitable for children (plenty of space, outdoors).

**Where can I park at Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj?**

There is free parking at Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj (next to the museum gate). There is no official information about parking; visitors usually stop next to the museum gate, beside the DJ665.

**How do I get to Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj?**

Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj is located at DJ665, ~10 km north of Târgu Jiu, Curtișoara, Gorj County. By car: from Târgu Jiu take the DN67 (Calea București), then the town's eastern bypass northwards and the DJ665 to Curtișoara: ~13 km, ~20 minutes. From Petroșani, drive down the DN66 through the Jiu Gorge: ~52 km, ~1 h 30. From Craiova, take the DN6 and DN66 towards Târgu Jiu: ~120 km, ~2 h 20. Public transport: the nearest railway stations are Târgu Jiu and Bumbești, the latter ~6 km from the museum, on the line to Petroșani; from there a taxi is the simplest option. No direct bus link to the museum is published.

**When is the best time to visit Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj?**

The best season for Museum of Popular Architecture of Gorj: April – October (the visit is mostly outdoors).

## Nearby attractions

- [Cartianu Kula](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/cula-cartianu) — Fortresses and fortifications · Turcinești, GJ · 45 min · 5 km
  Fortified boyar house in Cartiu, near Târgu Jiu, built around 1760 on the core of a kula and wrapped in timber porches; it now houses a museum of Gorj folk costume.
- [Cuvioasa Paraschiva Wooden Church in Glodeni](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/biserica-de-lemn-glodeni-gorj) — Churches · Glodeni, GJ · 30 min · 11 km
  A wooden church from around 1728, with an ornamented porch and a bell tower added in the 19th century, in a hill village of Bălănești commune.
- [Endless Column](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/coloana-infinitului) — Monuments and historic sites · Târgu Jiu, GJ · Free · UNESCO World Heritage · Top 20 · 12 km
  The 29.35 m column of brass-coated cast-iron modules raised by Constantin Brâncuși in 1938 in Târgu Jiu for the heroes of 1916: the eastern end of the “Heroes' Avenue” ensemble, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- [Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/biserica-sfintii-apostoli-targu-jiu) — Churches · Târgu Jiu, GJ · 20 min · UNESCO World Heritage · 13 km
  The three-towered Orthodox church built in 1927–1937 on Heroes' Avenue in Târgu Jiu, halfway along the axis between the Gate of the Kiss and the Endless Column, and part of the UNESCO-listed Brâncuși ensemble.
- [The Gate of the Kiss](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/poarta-sarutului) — Monuments and historic sites · Târgu Jiu, GJ · Free · 20 min · UNESCO World Heritage · Top 100 · 13 km
  The travertine gate carved by Constantin Brâncuși in 1937–1938 at the entrance to Târgu Jiu's Central Park, part of the “Heroes' Way” ensemble, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- [The Table of Silence](https://peplaiuri.ro/en/masa-tacerii) — Monuments and historic sites · Târgu Jiu, GJ · Free · UNESCO World Heritage · Top 100 · 13 km
  Constantin Brâncuși's round stone table with 12 hourglass seats, in the park on the banks of the Jiu: the western end of the Heroes' Way ensemble, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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Last updated: 21 October 2026
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