Pharmacy Museum

About Pharmacy Museum

The Pharmacy Museum occupies the ground floor and basement of Hintz House, a listed historic building on Union Square (Piața Unirii), with the entrance in the pedestrian passage on the corner. The oldest pharmacy in Cluj operated here from the 16th century, at first a public one controlled by the town council. In the 18th century it became private, its best-known owner being the pharmacist Tobias Mauksch (1752–1802), and in the 19th century it passed to the Hintz family, who kept it until nationalisation in 1949.

The museum opened in 1954, based on collections of pharmaceutical objects gathered since the early 20th century, among them the donation of Professor Iuliu Orient, and since 1963 it has been run by the National Museum of Transylvanian History. The house was restored in 2019–2023, the exhibition was redone and the museum reopened in January 2024. The collection shows how pharmacy worked in Transylvania between the 16th and 20th centuries.

Information verified on 23 October 2026.

Good to know before you go

Getting there

By car: the museum is on Union Square (Piața Unirii), the central square of Cluj, at the corner with Strada Regele Ferdinand; the entrance is in the pedestrian passage on the corner. The city is reached via the A3/DN1 from Oradea (~150 km) and Turda (~30 km), the DN1 from Alba Iulia (~100 km) and the DN16 from Reghin; Bucharest is ~450 km away. Traffic is restricted in the old centre, so leave the car in a nearby car park and walk.

Public transport: from Cluj-Napoca railway station it is ~2 km to Union Square (~25 minutes on foot, along Strada Horea and over the Horea Bridge, or a few stops on the buses and trolleybuses to the centre). From Cluj International Airport, ~9 km away, bus A1 runs to the centre.

Where to park

The museum has no car park of its own; the paid public car park on Union Square is ~50 m away. In central Cluj you can also park on the street, paying by zone. At weekends and during events spaces in the centre fill up quickly.

Fees & discounts

Adult ticket 44 lei; pensioners 20 lei; pupils and students, Euro 26 card holders (up to 30 years old) and adults with a medium or mild disability 10 lei. The family ticket (2 adults and one child) costs 66 lei, and further children enter free. The combined ticket with the National Museum of Transylvanian History costs 70 lei (adults) and 15 lei (pupils and students); the combined family ticket, 110 lei. Admission is free for pre-school children, for children up to 18 during school holidays, for ICOM card holders, for pensioners on Wednesdays and on 1 October, for all children on 1 June and, for Euro 26 card holders under 30, on the 26th of the month. A guided tour with a curator, in Romanian or Hungarian, costs 165 lei for a group of up to 30 people, and in English 220 lei; it is booked at least three days ahead by phone (for Saturday or Sunday, by Thursday 16:00). Tickets can also be bought online.

Rules

The visit is self-guided, with the audio guide, or with a guide by appointment. Children under 12 may enter only with an adult at all times. Professional photo shoots are charged. Do not touch the displayed items, except in the interactive areas.

Facilities

Toilet · free audio guide, via wi-fi, on your own phone · hall leaflets in Romanian, English and Hungarian · interactive touch and smell areas · mobile step stools for small children · online tickets