H. Szilasi Ágota - Várkonyi Péter - Bujdosné Pap Györgyi - Császi Irén (szerk.): Agria 50. (Az egri Dobó István Vármúzeum Évkönyve - Annales Musei Agriensis, 2017)
Zábrátzky Éva: Ládák a palóc lakodalmi szokásokban
Éva Zábrátzky CHESTS IN THE PALÓC WEDDING TRADITIONS In the spring of 2014 a travelling exhibition was launched by the ethnographer- museologists of the Dobó Castle Museum, entitled „Onto the Cart and Pile up the Pillows...” Riven and Painted Chests from Palóc Land. The exhibition travelled to seven towns (Heves, Eger, Mezőkövesd, Tiszavasvári, Szolnok, Kézdivásárhely), allowing visitors to learn about the history of this ancient piece of furniture from the Palóc region. Part of the exhibition examines the role of these chests in folk traditions. The ornate riven and tulip-pattern painted chests were made for the bride’s dowry, remaining as one of the symbols of marriage up to the early 20th century. They were often called bridal or dowry chests. People usually made or bought such riven or painted chests at the time of their daughter’s wedding, because these were also meant to show off the wealth of a family to the village community. After discussing the traditions and expectations related to dowries, the study moves on to the custom of ágyvitel (dowry procession) during a Palóc wedding, since the event of taking the bride’s dowry to her new home provided the opportunity to parade these beautifully carved or painted chests in front of the villagers. In the researched area the guests of the bride and the groom did not party together after the wedding. The bridal guests went over to the groom’s house at midnight. This visit was called „hérész”, during which the chests were used again to serve food to the visitors. The study describes the changes and the local variations in these traditions from the first ethnographic descriptions to the present day. Within the hidden symbolism of these traditions, the chest is the symbol of the woman, which is why it remained in use in the Palóc region until the mid-20th century. 210
