Calvinist Parsonage, Misztótfalu

The Calvinist parsonage of Misztótfalu, near Nagybánya, is—apart from the Calvinist parsonage in Óbuda (1908–1909)—the only minister’s residence that was built entirely according to the designs of Kós Károly. This was also due to the Calvinist pastor Molnár József, who supervised the construction. The pastor and the architect maintained lively correspondence about the building process between 1960 and 1966. Most of the plans were produced in the autumn of 1961. Molnár first wrote to Kós on 29 August 1960, inviting him to undertake the design; in his letter dated 5 September 1960, Kós accepted the commission. Construction could begin in September 1961, with Kós sending working drawings to the pastor on an ongoing basis. The inhabitants of Misztótfalu modified the building program several times, which prolonged the design process. Molnár’s letters also reveal that it was not easy to carry out the construction strictly according to the plans, as there were several points at which deviations were desired. Due to a heart attack suffered by Kós in 1963, he had to interrupt several of his projects. After a long pause, he reappeared in a letter dated 6 October 1964 and undertook to continue the design work. Construction of the rising walls began in 1965. The roof structure was completed in 1966; the detailed drawings for the carpentry were made by Kós while bedridden. In 1971, the pastor visited Kolozsvár together with the carpenter to discuss the carpentry details with Kós. In February 1976, Molnár sent the architect a series of photographs of the completed building.

The Misztótfalu parsonage provides an example of the prototype designs created by the architect for rural villages. This small-scale composition, built from locally available materials such as adobe brick, employs a formal language that is in harmony with the traditional environment.