Cseri Miklós - Horváth Anita - Szabó Zsuzsanna (szerk.): Discover Rural Hungary!, Guide (Szentendre, Hungarian Open Air Museum, 2007)

Some Historical Facts

Some historical facts Open air ethnographic museums were established at the end of the 19th century as a result of the combination of a number of factors. On the one hand as museology itself developed and became more specialised, demand arose for the creation of ethnographic museums which could display folk life (houses, outbuildings, furniture and household equipment) in a more sophisticated way. On the other hand the continuing development of the capitalist economy during the 19th century resulted in intensive urbanisation and rapid social change throughout most of Europe and the traditional peasant way of life declined. Vernacular architecture began to decay at an alarming speed and the preservation of folk architecture became imperative. "Skanzens" have proved to be exceptionally appropriate for accomplishing this dual task. It was the outstanding Swedish scientist, Arthur Haselius who established the worlds first open air museum in Stockholm in 1891 to preserve and interpret the characteristic buildings of the various Swedish regions and ethnic groups and to enable them to be seen by large numbers of people. It was named Skansen after the part of the city where it was located and the term has since found its way into many languages, including Hungarian and become the generic term for open air museum. In the wake of the Swedish example many skanzens of varying sizes were created at first in Scandinavia but then following World War I in the What happened - in the world? Miniskirts are the height of fashion. I • 1967 The Open Air Museum is - around the Open Air Museum? founded on the outskirts of Szentendre. 14