Hungary's Treasury [antikvár]

reat nations write their autobiographies in three manuscripts - the book of their deeds, the book of their words and the book of their art. Not one of these books can be understood unless we read the two others, but ofthe three the only trustworthy one is the last." So wrote poet, artist and critic John Ruskin, leading figure in Victorian England. His words remain valid to this day. Staying true to the thoughts of Ruskin and in the course of editing this volume presenting Hungary's treasury, we have drawn from the very finest of Hungárián museums. Few people know, for instance, that of the three surviving sculptures of Marcus Aurelius in the world arguably the finest, the one-and-a-half-times life-size bronzé head of the emperor, is on display in a museum in Hungary. Another of our museum treasures is the unique water organ of Antiquity; a working instrument was reconstructed on the basis of what had been unearthed here in Hungary. And there again, do you know how Martin Luther, leading figure of the Reformation, disposed of his property in his last will and testament written in his own hand? Are you aware ofthe person behind the rescue from complete destruction of the lifework of Tivadar Csontváry Kosztka? The fact that Pécs is not only a city of museums, but it alsó has a museum Street, and why there is a 2837-metre peak in the South Tirol called Cima di Eötvös? Perhaps it is similarly not common knowledge that the meerschaum pipe started on its 'conquest ofthe world' from Hungary, or that American presidentTheodore Roosevelt was a fan ofthe novels of Kálmán Mikszáth. You'll find answers to all these questions plus many more fascinating insights in this book. Despite our every effort, the Achilles' heel ofthe work remains details ofthe opening times of museums. The reason for such uncertainty lies in the fact that in our fast-changing world many institutions reserve the right to flexibly adapt to the demands of visitors. In other words, caution is advised (primarily in the case ofthe small and speciálist collections) and we recommend a telephone call in advance to double-check opening times. We trust that the rich selection of photographs will serve to complement the informative text on each institution. Fi na I ly, may we wish all those devoting themselves to the search for Hungary's treasures