Körmöczi Katalin szerk.: Historical Exhibition of the Hungarian National Museum 3 - From the End of the Turkish Wars to the Millennium - The history of Hungary in the 18th and 19th centuries (Budapest, 2001)

ROOM 10. Hungary in the 18th Century (Gábor Németh)

15. Baroque guild chest of the stonemasons of Pest, 1696 with maquette-like scenes depicting various mining operations. With its help we can form an impression of the lay-out and equipment of mines at this time. It was made in 1734, and a good number of goldsmith's works of similar style and material have survived. The large grandfather clock comes from Nagyszeben (Sibiu), in Transylvania, and is embellished with gilded carving. It was made by Edward Speer, a local mastercraftsman. After this, a rich collection of handicraft items greets the visitor. Guilds lived on during the 18th century, and even experienced a new boom within their traditional bounds. If we overlook the few manufactory-founding initiatives, industry continued to be organized on a guild basis. In time of peace new guilds were formed one after the other in villages and market-towns, too. With the exception of crafts catering for everyday needs, various handicraft industries could be found in the larger royal free towns. Through the Council of Lieutenancy, enlightened absolutism standardized and limited guild privileges to a certain degree, and also took steps against the formation of alliances between guilds. Some crafts in Hungary which could look back on a glorious past - for example, that of the goldsmiths - achieved European fame. On festive occasions guild ceremonies, which had strong religious overtones, took place in front of an open guild chest. A outstanding example of these is the guild chest ornamented with Baroque architectural motifs (Fig. 15). In these chests, guilds kept their money, valuables, the letters listing their privileges, and their seals, which were used a means of authentication. Master-craftsmen were summoned to meetings using guild summoning-plates. Guild members presented guild wardens with pewter platters ornamented with symbols of their craft; these were given as New Year gifts. Indispensable items at guild dinners were the large pewter tankards that were filled at the barrel. A testimonial provided evidence of the years spent in apprenticeship, and was often embellished with a picture of the settlement where these years were served. A fine example is the handwritten testimonial, from 1754, of the tailors' guild at Diószeg (Diósig) (Bihar county), the embellishment of which represents a folk variation on Baroque art. A masterpiece of ironworker's art from 1766 is a wrought-iron blacksmith's sign, bearing marks of the Rococo style. THE CHANGING LIFESTYLE AND ENVIRONMENT OF THE NOBILITY The 18th century brought great changes in the lifestyle and object environment of the nobility, and of the aristocracy especially. Following the patterns established by the