Fügedi Márta szerk.: B.-A.-Z. megye népművészete (Miskolc, 1997)

ANGOL NYELVŰ ÖSSZEFOGLALÁS Fügedi Márta

customs related to feasts and festivals for a long time: the godmother brought the food tied in a richly ornamented cloth to the young wife lying in child bed, and the bride presented the guests with decorated shawls at the wedding feast, but woven or embroidered textiles also indicated bereavement and the solemnity of the farewell to the deceased. In the villages of Bükkalja and northern Bodrogköz there was especially a deeply rooted cult of these richly decorated linens: magnificent shawls were woven for almost all the important turning-points of life. Our oldest embroidered textiles which have remained were used in church ceremonies. In the 17th and 18th century church textiles and altar cloths the noble act of donation is also reflected but the ornaments also refer to how the ornamentation of sophisticated culture, especially that of the Renaissance, have survived in the folk art of an ever wider layer of the society. The embroideries of the Matyós of South Borsod can be considered to be a unique example of peasants' embroidery. These show the local taste and need for decorations of a conscious, closed peasant community, which were separate and different from anything else, on richly decorated sheets, shirts and aprons. Since the turn of the century this colourful, magnificent type of embroidery, which was declared really rustic, has also been prepared for sale and has become known all over the world as the representative of Hungarian folk art. In contrast to the magnificent textiles used at festivals and feasts the mountaineous regions of our county are characterised by a wide variety of linens used for carrying loads in on one's back. This is the prominent way of carrying loads with human power in the northern part of the Hungarian speaking area and it is the women's job. Besides the decorated object used at feasts there are plenty of household goods among the devices used for storing, processing and consumption in the households of the peasants which can be classified as works of folk art on the basis of their ornamentation and aesthetic quality. The overwhelming majority of these things belong to the devices used by women in their work. Generations of devices of different origin and level could be used simultaneously in the kitchen. Iron saucepans with a handle were made in the forges of Upper Northern Hungary but crockery for cooking and baking were also made of the fire clay of Gömör. The various frying pans, lid racks and coat racks were made by gipsy tinkers. The cabbage cutters with the Baroque abundance of carved ornaments, dating from the 18th century on, are masterpieces of peasant decorative art. Mainly gipsies excelled in carving wash tubs. Other wooden devices, however, were made by the specialists of the regions rich in wood in bigger quantities. Wicker and sapwood baskets were mainly made in the area along the Tisza. Containers of varying form and ornamentation were made of straw for storing eggs, corn and even bread. The small gadgets, the spoon holders, match holders and the decorated small wooden boards used for rolling shell pastry, all made in Bükkalja, are tiny masterpieces of wood-carving. These richly ornamented tiny articles were made by the lads for their girl-friends, the ornaments and inscriptions also show that they originally functioned as presents.