Szekessy Vilmos (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 53. (Budapest 1961)

Nemeskéri, J.: Fifteen years of the Anthropological Department of the Hungarian Natural History Museum (1945-1960)

The Department was here for about 5 months, and then moved, as a result of an overall reshuffling of the institutions of the Hungarian National Museum after the loss caused by the fire in 1956, into the earlier Exhibition House of the Petőfi Literary Museum (Budapest, VI. Bajza u. 39.). The twelve rooms of the building allowed now the complete arrangement of the entire skull and skeleton collection in one place, the allocating of separate working room to each research worker, and the establishing of a laboratory suitable for modern anthropological research. The increase, that is, the changes in the personnel of the Anthropological Department were as follows. In 1945, at the time of the estabHshing of the Department, there were 2 research workers (J. N e m e s k é r i, S. W e n g e r). In 1946, concurrently with the growth of our projects the Ministry made it possible to give regular employment to two further workers (E. Balázs, T. Tarnócz y). However, the two latter scientists were appointed, after a three years service, to other institutions, and the Department received in their stead two other associates (P. Lipták, M. Mala n). In spite of the personal changes, the number of employees remained therefore unaltered. In 1951, two young museologists were committed (E. Bâtai, M. Deá k), and thus the personnel increased to six research workers. Then, in 1953 and 1955, the two latter workers left the Department. From this time on, there were but 4 research workers in the Department till 1958. In that year, T. Tóth, candidate of the Anthropological sciences, was added to the personnel increasing its number to five. At the end of 1958, À. T h o m a, museologist was also temporarily appointed to the Department. In 1960, there was a further change, in that P. L i p t á k, candidate of the Anthropological Sciences, received the Chair of Anthropology in the University of Sciences of Szeged, while Gy. Dezső, research worker of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, was assigned to the Department. Thus the personnel consists of 6 research workers, since December 1960. Aside of the scientific workers, the assistant staff (clerical work, restauration, etc.) is considerably less, as there were two in earlier years against the one person at present. Also, the Anthropological Department has 2 messenger-clerks. C) The development of the collections of the Anthropological Department in 1945-1960. One of the principal tasks of the Anthropological Department of the Hungarian Natural History Museum remained, also for the future, the augmentation of the Anthropological Collection, hand in hand with the studies of Historical Anthropology. Contrarily to earlier concepts, we considered it as one of our principal projects the gathering of a collection which allows and assures an anthropological evaluation in accordance with modern views. It follows that, immediately after World War II, we endeavoured to take an account of our losses caused by the war, to restore the materials of the collection which remained then, after a survey of the whole collection, to increase it methodically (1945— 1947). In this respect, the reorganization in 1949 of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences rendered considerable help, since, by placing at our disposal very substantial amounts, it assured the augmentation of the collection of higher demands. I also have to mention in this place that the decree law 13/1949 was enacted in December 1949, which legally bound the preservation of anthropological finds, unearthed in the country. The archeological excavations conducted more or less systematically since the turn of the century rendered, as mentioned also in the earlier chapter, valuable samples of finds. It must be noted, however, that archeological investigations with the closely concurrent preservation of anthropological finds of that era can best be characterized by "eventuality". Narrow financial means, short-sighted raising of problems, and, last but not least, lack of systematical research resulted in but a partial preservation of the materials. The partiality of excavations, and thus also the eventuality of the gathering of anthropological