Urbs - Magyar Várostörténeti Évkönyv 12. (Budapest, 2017)
Recenziók
Abstracts 425 Petra Mátyás-Rausch The precious metal mining in Liptó in the second half of the 16th century This study summarizes the first results of a major research project on the history of the precious metal mining in Liptó County. The region cannot be considered a mining district, although several mining towns can be found here. However, these towns did not achieve such a level of organisation that can be observed in the case of the mining towns along the river Garam (Selmecbánya, Besztercebánya and Körmöcbánya). In the territory of Liptó two mining settlements played an important role: Királybóca and Bóca. Királybóca enjoyed several medieval privileges but it was not able to benefit from its privileged position; the mining by itself did not become a sufficient driving force for developing into a prominent mining town. Bóca was owned by the Szenti- ványi family. The area had good mining potential, since from the middle of the 16th century a series of new mineshafts were explored, containing valuable ore. The citizens of the adjacent Besztercebánya (Leonard Kesler and associates) took the lead in the exploration and in the middle of the century they had the greatest and most valuable mining estate. The contemporary reports of the Lower Austrian Chamber show that despite the valuable mining possessions, the region faced many problems. According to the chamber committees, it could be explained by the lack of skilled work force; however, the nearby landowner families were considered as the biggest problem by the commissioners. Most of the conflicts arose with the Szentiványi family. Notwithstanding the many problems, the area attracted a lot of domestic and foreign entrepreneurs. László Glück Salt and society - The case of the five towns in Máramaros In the territory of medieval Máramaros County several salt mines were operating but by the beginning of the 16th century only one of them, Rónaszék (today Co§tiui, Romania) was still active. In the neighbourhood of the mines there were five settlements, which had municipal rights: Huszt (today Huszt, Ukraine), Visk (today Viskove, Ukraine), Técső (today Tjacsiv, Ukraine), Hosszúmező (today Cämpulung la Tisa, Romania) and Sziget (today Sighetu-Marmafiei, Romania). The study examines the effects of the nearby salt mining on the society of these settlements. The salt mines were owned by mining companies, the exploitation took place on an industrial scale; unlike in metal mining, small enterprises did not take part. The mining works employed many physical workers and several officials, who usually lived in the nearest town. However, around 1600 the proportion of physical workers remained low:
