Szolyák Péter - Csengeri Piroska (szerk.): A Herman Ottó Múzeum Évkönyve 56. (Miskolc, 2017)
Történettudomány - Bocsi Zsófia et al.: Adatok a kékedi római katolikus templom történetéhez
154 Bocsi Zsófia — Fazekas Gyöngyi — Giber Mihály — Szilágyi Krisztián Antal ADDITIONAL DATA ON THE HISTORY OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH OF KÉKED Keywords: Kéked, Roman Catholic church, settlement and parish history, architecture history, monument research Generally speaking, the origin of the Roman Catholic church of Kéked (Alsókéked) can be traced back to the late Middle Ages. The church certainly existed during the 15th century however based on a 14th century papal tithe registry a church must have existed even before, as the settlement’s priest is mentioned by name, even if the church itself is not accounted for. The church had been constructed by the Kékedi family. It was occupied by the Reformed Church during the mid-16th century and it belonged to them for a long period. The church was destroyed (or rather, fallen to a heavily ruined state) during the Thököly uprising but it was rebuilt in 1729 by the Melczer family, who gained possession of Kéked in the last quarter of the 17th century through marriage. The earliest detailed account on the church’s appearance is the 1769 document titled canonical visitation. The nave and shrine of the 18th century church most likely depicted its original from the medieval times. There was already a tower in front of its western front although the time of its construction is uncertain and it is possible that the tower also has medieval traces in it. According to descriptions there is a small sacristy on the northern side of the church, its origin unknown (likely from the Middle Ages). By the late 18th century the church had proven too small for the congregation (meaning the church was smaller than its present day incarnation) which led to the decision of its expansion in the very early 1800s. The length of the church was increased (seemingly eastwards) and a new shrine and sacristy were built. The tower was also rebuilt and made taller. The nave and the shrine were vaulted and the old wooden balcony in the western end of the nave was also replaced with a newer one made out of stone. It was then when the church gained its current architectural interior and exterior with the tower, the openings on the front, the vaulting over the nave, the shrine and the sacristy. We do not know of any major construction work during the 19th century (apart from the inclusion of the pipe organ), however there is constant data on the facilities and repairs regarding the church. The 20th century was mostly the time of maintenance and renovation. The current murals and vault paintings were made in 1956 as well as the choice of green to serve as the basis for the colours of the interior. The last major renovations of the church were conducted in 1988—1989 and 2003. The aforementioned data do not provide with answers for ever question. It is unknown when was the first church in Kéked built during the Middle Ages. Could it be possible that the current day church originates not from the 15th but the 14th century instead? Did the pre-existing church only undergo renovation during the 15th century, or did the Kékedi family dismantle it completely and built a brand new one in its stead? The exact extent of the 19th century expansion is also unknown although we presume that the boundary between the early and expanded sections potentially lie somewhere around the eastern end in the middle section of the nave. Currently we also lack information on the origin and reasoning behind rather uneven distribution of buttresses seen on the fronts of the nave. An excavation combined with wall research could provide the best answer to these questions along with the extent and system of the layout of the medieval church. We believe that these questions (along with others) could be answered through research since it is highly likely that a fair amount of walls are of medieval origin and there is also a chance to find walls and floor elements belonging to the church before the expansion under the current flooring. Painter-restorer research tied to the excavation and wall research could reveal paint layers from the various periods of the church on a greater surface than ever before. Such research could provide us an image of the church from the early Modern Era, during its ruination during the conflicts of the late 17th century as well as when the Melczer family rebuilt it. The church requires renovation. Constant water damage of the walls and the flooring pose a serious issue. The condition of the walls certainly has to be improved but it will be for naught unless drainage around the church is not worked out as the exterior terrain is higher than the interior floor. The interior concrete flooring and plastic wainscoting on the walls (potentially hindering their ventilation) likely do not do any favours to the overall condition of the church either. Work is recommended to commence on the exterior fronts and terrain, plans for interior renovation should only follow afterwards (naturally both can be conducted simultaneously, but it is unadvised to have a renovated interior with exterior work done only afterwards or not at all). Hopefully renovation begins soon enough. It will be a major factor to strike a fine balance between monument preservation, archaeology, church, community usage, sustainability and financial priorities. Bocsi Zsófia — Fa-yekas Gyöngyi - Giber Mihály — Szilágyi Krisztián Antal
