Agria 42. (Az Egri Múzeum Évkönyve - Annales Musei Agriensis, 2006)

Viga Gyula: A jankófűrész, a fajankó és a kétkezi munka hasonló segítői

Gyula Viga The Jankófűrész, the Fajankó and other similar Two-Handed Work Implements This paper focuses on the history and the spread of the portable sawing frame, a work implement which can be found in eastern Hungary. Starting with the actual naming of the jankófűrész, it becomes clear that it is but one of numerous tools and objects whose names originate from the language of common folk. Looking at a number of specific examples it is possible to examine how the function of the implement contributed to the name by which it became known: in the objects in question their role is a "companion" or helper to the person doing the two-handed work, in which the active participant is holding the passive tool. Although Hungarian folk art is not known for its plastic representation, the museum collections have a number of excellent examples of these so-called "living" objects, tools. In our paper we refer to the fact that the material, the form and the function of the object were always indivisible from its "meaning", and suggest that it is likely that such animal or human-shaped tools have histories going back many thousands of years. 187