Brief History of the Hungarian Palaeontology [antikvár]

IntroductionThe first review on the history of palaeontological research in Hungary, by András TASNÁDI-KUBACSKA, was published for the Congress of the German Palaeontological Society, held in Budapest, September 1928. The first paragraphs of its preface, written by Ferenc NOPCSA, seem to be timely even today:"Inter arma silent musae. Peoples, whose country is protected from invasions of the enemy by its size or position, have almost all the time the possibility to perform scientific research in peace. Other peoples have been situated by fate on the ways of migration of great armies, and their small countries are more or less open to agressions and occupations. Such people must consecrate their entire energy to survival in the struggle for life; the best minds have to offer themselves and often in vain for the preservation of the nation.Under such circumstances it is understandable that in Hungary scientific life has always been possible only during the short pauses between invasions of the enemy: but in those times the freed energy is used for activities which promote the culture of the whole of Mankind."*The history of palaeontological research in Hungary has been strongly influenced by the adverse historical events affecting the country, such as frequent economic and social crises, repeated invasions, and the slow development of bourgeois mentality. On the other hand, the rich fossil record of the*"lnter arma silent musae. Völkern, deren Gebiet durch ihre Grössenausdehnung oder ihre Lage vor feindlichen Invasionen gewahrt ist, ist es fast jederzeit gegeben, wissenschaftlichen Forschungen in Ruhe nachzugehen. Andere Völker sind vom Schicksale auf die Zugstrassen der grossen Heere verwiesen, ihr kleines Gebiet daher feindlichen Einfallen und fremden Besetzungen mehr oder weniger offen. Solche Völker müssen ihre ganze Energie ihrer Erhaltung im Kampfe ums Dasein widmen, die besten Geister müssen sich daher und oft sogar vergebens der Erhaltung des Volkes opfern.Unter solchen Umständen ist es begreiflich, dass in Ungarn sich das wissenschaftliche Leben immer nur während der Ruhepausen zwischen den feindlichen Invasionen abspielen konnte, dann setzt sich aber die frei gewordene Energie in den Dienst jener Arbeiten, welche die Kultur der ganzen Menschheit fördern."