Melega Miklós (szerk.): Remembering St Martin in his birth place (Szombathely, 2016)

T

he events that made a $reat difference to create this work of art commemorating St martin are, amon^ others, as follows: The rather bad state of repair of the well in front of the Dominican church, eminent anniversaries and events in 1938 such as the 900th anniversary of Kincj St Stephen's death, the Sucharisti c World Congress in Budapest and the 300th anniversary of the Dominicans settling down in Szombathely. Set up in 1937, the statue committee invited design proposals from across the country. Those putting in a proposal had to meet an 11-point set of criteria, which specified, in addition to the way of the implementation, that: T/.The subject of the statue: Bishop St martin christens his mother. The figures of the statue must be at least life size, the statue must be made of bronze and the well must be made of Quality stones. The construction costs of the well statue may not exceed 10,000 pengős.'1 Prompted by the announcement in local and national papers more than 20 sculptors and architects requested the application package. After heated

discussions the jury evaluating the applications submitted invited the three most successful applicants for another round. From the second round the duo of the sculptor Rumi Rajhi István2 and the architect PÁzmÁNOY István, overcoming Kalotai Krsip&l Ottó and Fülöp Blemér from Felsőeőr, was declared winners. The two-ficjure bronze well statue by Rajhi István, preserving the local tradition of St martin christening his mother here, a tradition linked to both the town and the county in so many ways, also regarded as a pinnacle of his career, was officially unveiled on 2nd October 1938 amidst festive celebrations:

In 1996 the Rumi Rajki Circle of Friends of Arts had the statue restored. Its immediate vicinity underwent major reconstructions in 2008 and 2009. As the first phase of the constructions a commemorative stone, protruding from the ground, indicating the place of the original well and the ornamental ni^ht lights were built. In the second phase the pedestrians' pavement across the square was widened and carved stone banks were placed where the pilgrims of the Via Sancti martini can read the following sentence in six lan^uagSes:

Born in Savaria, St martin, who shared his doak with a be^gjar, christened his mother upon returning home.'4

Literature and notes

ITlacjyar Nemzeti Levéltár Vas Ftle^yei Levéltára (hereinafter: ITINL VatTlL) Szombathely város polgármesterének iratai. Közigazgatási iratok (hereinafter: SZV P^. Közig!. ir.) 7609/1937,

2 For his life and works see FtlNL VatTlL. A (Rumi) Raoki család iratai (hereinafter: Rajki ir.): Rumi Raoki István. Összeáll. NaűYvAradi Nóra Szombathely, 2004. 80 p. (Vasi életrajzi bibliográfiák: 39); Salaition Nándor: Rumi Raoki István szobrászművész élete és alkotásai. Vasszilvágjy, 2009. (hereinafter. Salarion. 2009.) 205 p.

0 For a summary on the well statue see Salaitiűn Nándor: A szombathelyi Szent márton-szobor története. 1-2. rá$z. - Vasi Honismereti és Helytörténeti Közlemények. 2008. 4. sz. 18-41. p.. 2009.1. sz. 68-84. p.: Salaition, 2,009. 142-163. p„- 6g(y remekmű születése. A szombathelyi Szent mártonkát szoborkompozíáó keletkezéstörténete. Időszaki kiállítás 2016. október 4. - 2017. március 31. Kiáliításvezető. írtp, szerk. Tóth Csaba. Szombathely, 2016. 52 p. (A Szombathelyi S^yhäzmegjye Kincsei)

4 HIanűliAr László: megszépült a szobor környéke. A Szent márton-szobor környezetének rendezése. « Vasi építész és mérnök. 2009.2. sz. 10-12. p.

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Remembering Stttlartin

in his birth placc