A Herman Ottó Múzeum Évkönyve 43. (2004)

Cseri Miklós-Kemecsi Lajos: A Szabadtéri Néprajzi Múzeum Felföldi mezőváros tájegysége

THE UPLAND MARKET TOWN REGIONAL UNIT IN THE HUNGARIAN OPEN AIR MUSEUM OF SZENTENDRE The culture of the Upland market town - situated in the hills - is part of both the scientific research concept and the exhibition - organising program of the Hungarian Open Air Museum in Szentendre. Although this topic is less known and respected from the aspect of research and the preservation of tangible heritage it is a significant part of our national heritage. The overall introduction of the region is a unique attempt - made by the Hungarian Open Air Museum first to show this part of the country from the viewpoint of cultural history and ethnography. The construction of the building complex is facilitated by the ethnographical research work, the study of authentic documents in archives and the architectural survey. The culture of the typical uplander stone architecture of the 17-19

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1 centuries can be characterised by the activities of winemaking, wine trade and different guilds. The influence of viniculture, shaping the settlements, turning them into towns is characteristic in the whole region. Besides the white wine of Tokaj - being a hungaricum - the red wines of Gyöngyös were widespread and popular for centuries, not only in Hungary, but - as the part of a long-distance European trade - in faraway European countries too. This productional activity determined the life of the inhabitants at the tum of the 18 - 19th centuries, which is the target period of the exhibitions concerning representation. The concept's original and copy buildings from Mád, Tállya, Hejce, Erdőbénye, Tokaj and Gyöngyös were chosen to represent the more significant functional versions of the region's stone architecture. Besides, they are also characteristic from the point of view of ground plans. These buildings were erected on narrow sites with a wine-house, a cellar and in some cases with a workshop. Concerning the furnishings of the edifices we emphasise the economical activities of the owner families and their craft. In the permanent exhibitions of the Museum the monuments (of social history, economic history, architectural history) are preserved and presented in accordance with the lifestyle and the ways of life. The permanent exhibitions of the characteristic buildings justify both the middle-class identity and demands of the region's inhabitants and their difference from the rural tangible culture. Miklós Cseri-Lajos Kemecsi 644