Endrei Walter szerk.: Textilipari Múzeum Évkönyve 8. 1995 (Budapest, 1995)

Walter Endrei: A printed silk fragment of the 17th century

printed on silk . He mentions even pieces that disappeared since and quotes also jésuite statutes (Rome 1703) prohibiting this extravagance. Our small fragment seems to be part of a thesis-sheet of the manner described by these authors. It is preserved in the Textile Department of the Hungarian National Museum and has been recently found within the mitre of Ágoston Benkovich (1632-1702) bishop of Nagyvárad on occasion of its restauration

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. The fragment measures 8 x 52 cm, the print had been done by copper-plate upon a silktaft (42/38) dyed brownish-red. The surviving parts show a row of the early fathers standing under palms and Pallas Athene holding a ribbon with a caption. The legend is mutilated, but can easily be restored by some syllables and turns out to be a distichon running as follows: perte paVLe sVos ContrlVIt (p/atria) hostes Conterai VE sCYthlCas faC(Leo-) poLVDs hYDras. Hence the chronostichon results the year 1680. This year delivers no perceivable connection to Benkovich, the original owner. On the other hand the verse suggests, that it might have been addressed to Paul Esterházy, - who Borsa G.: Selyemre készült hazai nyomtatványok Magyar Nyelv 108 (1992) 264-69 and 109 ( 1993) 440 f. 7 Inventory Nr 77.174