
Photographer Roman Robroek has always been drawn to photographing abandoned places, so when he discovered the empty but majestic Casino Constanta on the coast of the Black Sea in Romania, he knew he had to shoot it.
The Art Nouvea-style building was originally commissioned by King Carol I and built around the year 1900, opening to the public as a casino in 1910. “Many wealthy travellers enjoyed their time playing games and dancing in the symbol of the city,” Robroek told Business Insider of the building’s past.
Unfortunately, in 1990 the building was closed to the public, and it has been left sitting empty, slowly becoming more and more dilapidated. Ahead, 13 of Robroek’s photos inside the once-gorgeous building.
'Once this was the most glorious building of Romania, but since 1990 it's been abandoned, and slowly but surely falling apart,' said Robroek.

'The casino is in Constanta (formerly known as Tomis), Romania, and is now listed as a historic monument by the Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs of Romania,' he said.

'During the 1914 visit of the Russian Imperial Family, the casino was host to a royal gala,' he said.


Source: Atlas Obscura
According to Robroek, the building is now guarded at all hours of the day, and legal permission must be granted to enter the property.


'We talked to one of the guards the night before our appointment and he felt sad and angry because authorities seem to simply not care about renovation of the building. Nobody understands it,' he said.

'As soon as I set a foot inside, a dead pigeon fell from a railing and cats jumped on it to drag it into a corner and eat it. There was mess all over the place and furniture was falling apart,' he said.

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