H. Kolba Judit szerk.: Historical Exhibition of the Hungarian National Museum Guide 2 - From the Foundation of the State until the Expulsion of the Ottomans - The history of Hungary in the 11th to 17th centuries (Budapest, 2005)

ROOM 1 - The Age of the House of Árpád Kings (11th—13th centuries) (Júlia Kovalovszki)

ROOM 1 The Age of the House of Árpád Kings (11th to 13th centuries) In the century following the Conquest and takeover of the new country, it became clear that the Hungarians could survive in the Carpathian Basin only if they broke with their earlier way of life and joined the ranks of the Christian peoples of Europe and of the new states in the making during this time. The most important requirement for this transformation was the adoption of Christianity and the creation of a central royal power. This was accompanied by the creation of the new state structure. Prince Géza (972-97), great-grandson of Prince Árpád, who had been the supreme commander of the conquerors, recognized the necessity of change, as did his son Vajk, who was later baptised a Christian and given the name Stephen. They imposed their will with an iron hand, and created a strong, independent state in the Carpathian Basin. Stephen (997-1038) was crowned on the first day of the new millennium with a crown sent by Pope Sylvester II. During his reign the Hungarians adopted the Christian faith. The securing of independence and domestic peace for the country created favourable conditions for an up-todate transformation of society and the economy, and made the evangelization of the country possible. During the reign of Stephen, the leading strata of Hungarian society still lived a nomadic life, although the greater part of the common people had already been leading a settled life for some considerable time. The measures taken by Stephen promoted the settled way of existence. Thanks to his royal will, Hungarians achieved equal status with the Christian peoples of Europe. Stephen was canonized in 1083. His efforts were brought to fruition by his successors, especially by King Ladislas the Saint (1077-1095), Coloman Beauclerc ( 1095-1116) and Béla /7/(11721196). After the tragic devastation of the country during the Mongol campaign (Tatar invasion) of 1241, Béla IV ( 123 5-1270) restored the country again. This modernization, lasting several decades, led, however, 9 to a crisis of royal power. Our exhibition can but imperfectly display this complicated historical process lasting 300 years. ROYAL RELICS One of the most splendid and valuable treasures among the goldsmith's works held by the Hungarian National Museum is the Monomachos Crown. It consists of gold lamina decorated with cloisonné enamel and depicts not only the Byzantine emperor Constantine IX Monomachos and the empresses Theodora and Zoe (joint rulers: 1042-1050), but also allegorical female figures of the virtues of Truth and Humility and figures of dancers (Fig. 1). This masterpiece was unearthed in 1860 in Nyitraivánka (Ivánka pri Nitre). The most important material remains of the age of the Árpád kings, the Hungarian royal insignia, are displayed in a separate exhibition. The kingdom as an institution is symbolized in the room by a throne. The red marble throne (c. 1200), decorated with coloured stone incrustations, comes from the royal castle at Esztergom. From the relics linked to the Árpád kings, the grave goods (12th century) of Béla III and his first consort, Anne, princess of Antioch, found in the ruins of Székesfehérvár Provostry, have a special importance. In the red marble sarcophagus (12th century), together with the skeleton of the king, symbolic royal insignia (silver funerary crown, sceptre, sword), a bronze-gilt crucifix, a pectoral cross decorated with cloisonné enamel of Byzantine origin, a gold ring with almandines bearing an Arab inscription, a silver armilla, and a pair of spurs came to light. The queen was buried with a silver-gilt crown and a gold ring set with a garnet. Some pieces of her robe decorated with lace made of silver-gilt thread also survived. The king's head from