Kovács Petronella (szerk.): Isis - Erdélyi magyar restaurátor füzetek 6. (Székelyudvarhely, 2007)
Kiss Hédy: A Székely Nemzeti Múzeumban őrzött zászlók állapotfelmérése
gate panel above the foot-gate is the most ornamented element. The coat-of-arms of Transylvania in a round shield occupies the central field. Its interesting feature is that the master depicted the double-eagle in it. The carving of the Austrian double-eagle is not a unique case in itself, but there are no analogues of a similar composition of the coat-of-arms of Transylvania. Tendrils with leaves and vines run into a tulip motive on both sides of the panel and above the shield. The year 1816 is marked at the bottom of the panel. One of the heads of the double-eagle is cut off. In the second half of the 20th century, the authorities compelled the owners to carve off the ornaments of the gates decorated with coats-of-arms, then they had to be boarded up or the complete panel had to be removed. This gate is less maimed, so it seems more probable that one of the heads of the eagle was cut off after 1848 or in the year of the Compromise of 1867 to protest against the Austrian absolutism. The parts of the posts dug into the earth usually rotted after 50 years, so, just like in our case, they were strengthened a few times. The bore-holes in the posts indicate that the wings of the gate, which had disappeared by the time of the collection, were several times replaced. In consequence of the strengthening of the gate posts, the three parts of the carved posts (foot, body and head) remained only at the lateral post of the large gate. The gate suffered the gravest damage after it had lost its function and the periodical renovations ceased so that both physical and biological deteriorating factors left their traces in the wooden construction. The hammered lock bolts holding the strengthening elements of the feet were covered with rust. A joint was missing from the right side of the foot gate. The triangles enclosed by the joints of the large gate, the so-called small windows, fell out on both sides. The binding of the joints got weakened and the pegs rotted. The dovecot made of pine boards was rotten beyond rescue. The gate posts were poorly preserved and rotten, and a bird nest, an anthill, fungus infection and deterioration by insects could be observed in the horizontal beam. The gate was taken apart and disinfected for 72 hours in Phostoxin. After airing, it was mechanically cleaned. The dirt settled on the surfaces of the wooden elements was removed with brushes and a vacuum-cleaner. The weakened wood was stabilised with epoxy resin (Araldit BY 158, Härter HY 2996, + toluol). According to the measurements, it was successful to a depth of 8 cm except the upper part of the horizontal beam, which had to be completed in the total length because of the progressive rotting. The gate represents a significant museum value even without completions, so only the larger missing elements were replaced, while the cracked and broken parts of the ornaments were only conserved. The joint of the right side of the foot gate was replaced according to the pattern of the facing element, following the lines of the jointing. At the large gate, a few parts of the small window were replaced. The new elements were not carved since the missing elements of the two joints came from different parts. The completions were prepared from the material of a roofed oak bridge built in 1830, which was later pulled down. Thus we could get the colour of the gate without staining and retouching. The hammered iron elements were treated with RO 55 rust remover and passivating agent and rifle grease. We did not reconstruct the rotten dovecot since together with it, it would have been impossible to take the Székely gate into the exhibition room. To the period when the gate is exhibited in the exhibition “Flowers of Székely Land”, the Székely gate was reconstructed without the dovecot with two rows of pine tiles from Székelyvarság placed directly on top of the horizontal beam. We did not reconstruct the original red painting of the posts and the horizontal beam, of which only traces have been preserved, since the actual condition of the surfaces did not afford it. During reassembling, the original pegs, screws and hammered iron nails were used and the missing ones were replaced. With the restoration of the Székely gate, the third oldest gate of the region could be exhibited within museum circumstances beside the 14 gates of the gate exhibition of the museum in Szejkefürdő. According to our agreement, the former owner got a new foot gate without wings prepared by a restorer specialist after the pattern chosen by the former owner. On the occasion of the last collecting tour we found that it had not been raised during the past seven years, it was kept in a bam without function. Emil Ráduly ethnographer museologist, Petronella Kovács and András Morgós restorers our colleagues from Hungary contributed to our work. István Demeter Restorer Haáz Rezső Museum Odorheiu Secuiesc Zoltán Miklós Ethnographer-museologist Haáz Rezső Museum Odorheiu Secuiesc András EMŐDI Book and library rehabilitation in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nagyvárad In Nagyvárad (Oradea), it was the Catholic Church that owned libraries that were eminent on a national level regarding both the quantity and the contents. A significant library collection was accumulated by monastic orders and the secular clergy since the Middle Ages. During the time of the Turkish occupation and the Reformation, the bishopric and the chapter survived only in name until the Catholic restoration one and a half century later. Protestant princes transported a part of the book collections to the princely centre, while the rest got into the Jesuit monasteries of Kolozsvár (Cluj-Napoca) and Gyulafehérvár 85
