A műemlékek sokszínűsége (A 28. Egri Nyári Egyetem előadásai 1998 Eger, 1998)

Előadások / Presentations - NÉMETH Györgyi: Monument protection in large industrial establishments

Újmassa blast-furnaces, which could be regarded as its predecessors, were set up in the depth of the Bükk hills, near where the iron ore was explored by Henrik Fazola in the area of Uppony and Nekázseny and the forests were also there providing plenty of wood necessary for iron melting, The blast-furnaces corresponded to the average standard of the period. Only the abutment of the former has remained whereas the latter has become Hungary's number one industrial monument following its restoration in the 1950s after having been planned for decades. The so-called chancellery building of a listed monument character reminds us of the iron-foundry at the end of the 18th century. It was constructed for the management and administration but it also provided a residential quarter and had storerooms, too. Today it houses the Central Foundry Museum. Hámori lake is another reminder of the early iron-foundry, which is actually an artificial water reservoir and provided the necessary water for the tilting-mills located where the Szinva and Garadna rivers meet. Many tourists but even the majority of the Miskolc population do not know this fact. After iron founding with charcoal had become out-of-date and the capacity of Újmassa proved too small, the Hungarian state decided to set up a new iron-foundry on the outskirts of the towns of Miskolc and Diósgyőr in order to supply the rails required by the state railways. Despite careful feasibility studies, the location of the plant was not a fortunate choice. Since it was difficult to transport the coal from the neighbouring mines, which were not able to produce sufficient good quality coal anyway, a separate branch railway line had to be built, the main roads were far, not speaking about the fact that the area was not flat but sloping and the ground-water level was high. Still, between 1870 and the turn of the century the plant had several unfired brick buildings. The railway top-hamper manufacturing building, the wooden framed hall for producing individual machinery and the partly extended two aisle hall of the screw factory can still be seen. The turn-ofthe-century building of the chemical laboratories famous for its special ventilation system is still operating and a large part of the original laboratory equipment has remained in relatively good condition. A cast iron arch makes the transfer hall built in 1911 interesting. The colony was built parallel with the factory buildings. The residential blocks, schools, churches, the hospital and the chemist were built in the same style and from the same materials as the factory buildings. The Pereces colony built for miners working in the mines supplying the coal for the factory shows a similar picture. The Granzenstein tunnel, technically an outstanding construction of the period, had a narrow gauge rail line so that coal and miners could be transported to the factory and the mines respectively. The eastern power station put into operation in 1940 was the result of developments between the two World Wars. The 1950s brought large scale changes when the third 780 cubic metre blast-furnace was built with cooling towers, a new fire-proof brick factory was constructed to replace the old one destroyed during the war. The medium rolling-mill built of bricks but with a bauxite-concrete and steel structure also began operation at that time. Following the 1964 reconstruction the view of the plant changed significantly since the original character of several old halls was altered due to their extension by brick walls constructed into steel frames according to production requirements. Further large scale constructions were effected in 1969, at the beginning of 1970s and around 1980 when number 2 electro steelworks, steel rolling works and the complex steel works were built. Looking at the buildings, objects and technological devices of the iron-foundry bearing the name of Lenin from 1953 we are convinced that beside some monuments of the early period monument protection should also take other objects into consideration. We must be aware of the preservation of several items, whether regarding the aesthetic values of the buildings and edifices, the unique nature and technical standard of the old machines still in operation, or the historic significance of the Borsod county industrial area to the time of the Hungarian conquest, iron production around the town of Miskolc up to the 18th century, not speaking about its role during the era of socialism or countryside formed by heavy industry and the peculiarities of its settlements. We can select from among a number of assets and fixed structures made after the