Horváth M. Ferenc (szerk.): Vác The heart of the Danube Bend. A historical guide for residents and globetrotters (Vác, 2009)
Tartalom
134 DISCOVERIES IN THE CRYPT OF THE DOMINICAN CHURCH - THE "MUMMIES OF VÁC” bones have survived in the case of the corpses lying in the common coffin; because of their removal and the change of conditions their interior organs rotted away. In addition to the mummies skeletons were also found in coffins by a damp wall. The human remains were taken to the Anthropological Collection of the Hungarian Museum of Natural History, the only public collection of the country specialized in this field, where a special preserving place was built for them and their anthropological examination is being carried out. The objects buried with the corpses have also survived the centuries in good condition.They were sorted out, cleaned, disinfected and packed on site. The funerary accessories, pieces of clothes, ritual objects were taken to the collection of theTragor Ignác Museum of Vác that performed the explorations. The coffins, the decorations of the bier (shroud, sheet, pillow, funerary garment, ribbon, wreath, plant, artificial flower) and the religious objects tell us about the customs and the rites of the contemporary funerals. Most of the coffins were made of pinewood, some with arched lids and turned legs. They were painted coloured, first brown and grey, and also green when the deceased was young; later blue became popular. Cheap paints were becoming common at that time. Some or other form of the crucifix was displayed on each coffin. The early ones were decorated with only the contours of the crucifix and some stylized flower garlands. Later the motifs were becoming more and more lifelike. The crucified Christ can be seen among flower garlands and bunches of flowers surrounded by the symbols of mortality: broken flowers, broken candles, hourglass. At the end of the period the coffins were adorned with Zopf and Rococo patterns, garlands and little angels. The crucifix with the wounds, stigmata of Christ is also common, as well as the portrayal of the crucifix in various forms of trees. The inscriptions are in Hungarian, German and Latin; they often provide information about the profession and the marital status of the deceased, and there are two farewell poems as well. Great differences can be observed in the standard of the painted decoration of the coffins, depending on the joiner's shop: both the artistic graphics of skilled hands and very simple patterns and letters can be seen. Coffins made of hard wood were expensive; they were only used by wealthy families. The inscriptions were written on metal boards, the crucifix was carved onto the lid. The third group of coffins are the oldest ones. They were covered with textile and decorated with rivets, with the crucifix formed of some different coloured material. The fabrics of the shrouds were also varied, from simple linen to pierced silk or even cloths hemmed with expensive lace.
