Műtárgyvédelem 26., 1997 (Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum)

Újvári Mária: Rózsafüzérek és keresztek a váci domonkos kripta leletanyagában

formly characteristic of infant and adult burials, while crucifixes (rarely only crosses) were found only in the hands of adults. A rosary was a commonly used devotional prerequisite of the period and even in the next century. The so-called “Dominican rosary” consisted of 150 small and 15 large beads, that is, it was divided into 15 decades. Only a minority of the rosaries from the crypt of the Dominican church belonged to this group. Most had 73 beads following the Mary cult of the period where the number of the beads represented the age of the Virgin Mary.

The majority of the crucifixes put into the hands (or rarely placed on the chest) of the deceased had been part of the decoration of a room until the burial. This is suggested by the suspension rings or even the remains of the ribbons or the traces of suspension with ribbons attached at the joint of the arms of the cross. The observation that some decorative elements were changed or replaced while others got lost (e.g. the coipus or the INRI inscription) imply that prior to the burial they had been used by successive generations. The hollow crosses also had a different original function: they were reliquary crosses. There are, however, some crucifixes where it may be supposed that they were bought for the burial. The thin-walled, fragile wax crosses belong to the latter.

The find assemblage contains 181 rosaries and 70 crucifixes and crosses. The laborious task of their restoration had permitted only a few of them so far to be treated.

Szerző cime/Author’s address:

Újvári Mária főrestaurátor/senior conservator Tragor Ignác Múzeum 2600 Vác, Múzeum u. 4.

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