Veszprémi Nóra - Jávor Anna - Advisory - Szücs György szerk.: A Magyar Nemzeti Galéria Évkönyve 2005-2007. 25/10 (MNG Budapest 2008)
NEW ACQUISITIONS, NEW RESULTS - Antal TÓTH: A Yet Unacknowledged Collaboration between János Fadrusz and Géza (Maróti) Rintel
ANTAL TÓTH A Yet Unacknowledged Collaboration between János Fadrusz and Géza (Maróti) Rintel GÉZA MARÓTI RINTEL: THE HUNGARIAN CONQUEST I, 1902 (111. 1) Surface-patinated metal relief, 18.5x6 cm Unsigned The frame reads: ÁRPÁD VALA NAGY EREMBEN / NINCH FILELMEK ORSZÁGOKBAN (Árpád was in great joy / There was no fear in their land) Inv. no.: 86.22-N GÉZA MARÓTI RINTEL: THE HUNGARIAN CONQUEST II, 1902 (111. 2) Surface-patinated metal relief, 18.6 X 63.2 cm Signed left-hand upper part: RG The frame reads: LAKOJ? FÖLDE NAGY JÓ VOLNA / ANNÁL JOBB SEHOL NEM VOLNA (Settle? Its land would be great, / Nowhere else any better.) Inv. no.: 87.8-N The Sculpture Department acquired two reliefs by Géza (Maróti) Rintel (1875-1941) in 1986 and the following year. (Ills 1-2) Their nearly identical size, material, decorative style and subject matter, inscriptions and Art-Nouveau-framings evidenced their close relationship. Due to the elaborate, ornate framings, which contain the runelike inscriptions interpreting the scenes, it never even occurred, we must stress, that the reliefs might not be parts of an independent artwork, but applications. The truth is that they had originally been made for the Tuhutum Altar by János Fadrusz (1858-1903) unveiled in Zilah in 1902 1 (III. 3), forming a decorative row around its frustum-pyramid base. (The copies in the collection exemplifying how the applications placed there turned into selfcontained works of art.) The similarity could have been noticed by a thorough examination of the reproduction of the monument published in Béla Lázár's book on Fadrusz, 2 but the idea of comparing them did not crop up. A thorough investigation was prompted by a paper Eva Lakóné Hegyi wrote on the demolished monument, which reproduced a photo of a fragment of the copy (the original plaster mould?) of one of its reliefs, the frieze at the top of its obelisk. 3 This made it obvious that the National Gallery acquired two of the side reliefs of the monument, and the maker of one of them at least, as attested by the initials RG, was undoubtedly Géza Rintel. Fate was gracious enough to provide us with further evidence. In 2. 1904, the applied-arts magazine Magyar Iparművészet published the photo reproductions of the two reliefs, naming the artists correctly, though with incorrect details on the material and title of the monument, stating: "Details from the Wesselényi statue in Zilah: bronze reliefs of conquering Hungarian riders," with the most important part of the announcement being: "moulded by Géza Maróthi R. after drawings by János Fadrusz." 4 Thus Fadrusz, apart from having sculpted a Wesselényi monument on commission from the town of Zilah, produced a parallel monument for Tuhutum, one of the seven chiefs of ancient Hungarians according to legend, out of pure generosity, for which he employed one or more aids. The Tuhutum Monument is a product of 19 th-century mentality in its formation of the Turul* (though one cannot fathom why it sits huddled, not spreading out its wings as usually depicted at the time) and various other requisites on the plinth. The architec-
