Matskási István (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 100. (Budapest 2008)

Korsós, Z.: History of the Herpetological Collection of the Hungarian Natural History Museum

DELY has never seen before living Tuataras (Sphenodon punctatus), but after some speculation he managed to recognise them. It was his proud success to pass the "exam", and thus immediately achieved MERTENS' admission. Several papers have already been published about the life and the herpetological work of DELY (KORSÓS 2004Í, KORSÓS & VÖRÖS 2004). Here, it is enough if we mention that he was the author of the most important Hungarian herpetological books: the volumes "Amphibians" (Amphibia, DELY 1967) and "Reptiles" (Reptilia, DELY 1978) of the Magyarország Állatvilága (Fauna Hungáriáé) academic series. In these two monographs, he described the species of the Hungarian herpetofauna with unprecedented thoroughness. He was the one to start and edit all the 23 volumes of the Vertebrata Hungarica, the Museum's journal on vertebrate zoology. The publication - which unfortunately ended in 1989 - contained many herpetological studies from DELY and his friend and colleague GÁBOR STOHL ( 1919- ) (DELY & STOHL 1982,1984), but we can find other herpetologists' names in it, too (BOROS, JANISCH, MARIÁN, and SZABÓ, for examples). For all his period in the museum's Herpetological Collection, DELY was helped by her diligent and faithful assistant, ERZSÉBET ÖRY ( 1921 -2004) (Figs 41-42), daughter of museum taxidermist SÁNDOR ORY mentioned earlier. She became employed in the museum in 1947, at first in the director general's office, then in the Departments of Mineralogy, Petrology, Geology and Paleontology, until she found her place in the Herpetological Collection of the Department of Zoology finally in 1954. She became soon a well-tempered and popular member of the assets working mostly on the reconstruction of the museum after 1956. They attended many memorable collecting trips together, and all of the storing bottles, labels, inventories etc. weared her handwriting. She preparated very diligently and precisely, counted the scales, measured the body proportions, replaced the alcohol on the amphibians and reptiles put under her care every day. She never married, and - living at a distance of a couple of metres away from the museum in Baross street - one can say that her entire life took place among the walls of the museum. ERZSÉBET ÖRY learnt fluent German from her Berliner mother (ERZSÉBET TOPP, 1886-1963), and also got an official medium level examination from German language in 1970. Her only brother died in 1971, and after that she lived completely alone. She always received the guests to the Herpetological Collection with open heart, had cheerful conversations with them, and prepared coffee in uncountable quantities. She retired in 1985, but until 1991, till DELY'S retirement, continued to be a valued assistant. In the following years she did not maintain any link with the museum, and it was only a few months after DELY'S death when she passed away in October, 2004. HERPETOLOGISTS IN THE COLLECTION During the 50 years DELY spent in the Herpetological Collection, he became a firm support for Hungarian herpetology. Many people used to visit him frequently, took advantage of the rich yet closely guarded library, examined the carefully stored collection. DELY paid extreme attention to all these objects under his care, and guarded them like they were his own.