The Archaeological Collections of the Hungarian Museums [antikvár]

The collection of archaeological material began in Hungary at the end of the eighteenth century.Methods of excavation of full historical value and the demand for them have in general only been achieved in the last twenty years. They were the result of unified scientific direction within the frame of a well established museum organization which embraced the requisite number of experts.Today archaeological material is preserved only in the museums, although excavations are extensively organized by the Archaeological Research Group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, the National Inspectorate of Historical Monuments and the Archaeological Institutes of the Universities.The body of archaeological material is increased by these excavations, which form an organic part of scientific archaeological projects envisaged for a long period. The excavations which precede the restoration of historical monuments are also made according to plan, part of them being carried out by the museums. Under the Hungarian Museums' Act it is their duty to rescue archaeological finds which come to light in the course of construction operations which entail earth-works. Where possible the entire material is retrieved by excavation before the works proceed. As a result of the planned and salvage excavations carried out on a wide scale the material preserved in the museums has been trebled in the last twenty years. Now our institutions contain 1.865.631 registered archaeological objects.A uniform system of registration and recording, continual restoration of the finds yielded by the excavations and, in most museums, well arranged storage offer possibilities for research and intensive scientific work.