Haris Andrea szerk.: Koldulórendi építészet a középkori Magyarországon Tanulmányok (Művészettörténet - műemlékvédelem 7. Országos Műemlékvédelmi Hivatal,)

Nagy Emese: Az ozorai obszerváns ferences kolostor

The Observant Franciscan Monastery of Ozora Emese Nagy The Franciscan Monastery of Ozora was founded at the centre of his estate by Filippo Scolari (Pipo of Ozora) one of the mightiest barons of the country who was also one of King Sigismund Luxembourg most trusted men. Ozora, which received its (civic) privileges from its landlord in 1426, became a flourishing market town in the heart of the enormous estate. One of the major stages in Ozora's development into a market town was the foundation and construction of the Observant Franciscan Monastery and Church. The permit to found the monastery was issued by Pope Martin V in 1418, and by 1423 the construction work was definitely completed. Being Comes of Temes County Pipo was able to learn about the Observant Franciscan Monasteries of southern Hungary, and could also meet representatives of the stricter branch of the Franciscan Order while fighting against the Turks. The strict religious principles of the Observants could easily have found favour with the great lord known for his moderation and piety; this, too, could have influenced his decision when he invited this particular order to build a monastery on his own estate. After the establishment of the Observant Order in Hungary, the monastery became the centre of the custodia; however, there are other sources underlining the importance of the monastery. After the death of Pipo of Ozora, the monastery first went into the possession of his widow; then, after 1443, it was transferred to Palatine Lőrinc Hédervári and his descendants in accordance with the widow's will. After it had been deserted by its inhabitants fleeing from the Turkish threat in 1443, the monastery building started to decay. The partial excavation of the monastery was done in 1957, when the eastern parts of the monastery and church could be surveyed, using ditches. The complete excavation was possible only at certain critical points. For various reasons, the survey of the western front was not possible; the western expanse of the monastery could be estimated from the terrain itself, as well as from some fragments of the wall, uncovered earlier by the current owners of the land. The north-south span of the building was 73 metres, of which 8.5 metres was taken up by the choir of the church. The east-north span of the church was between 35 and 40 metres, including the length of the choir measuring 17 metres. The quadrangular monastery building was widening towards its south front to a maximum of 55 to 60 metres. The archaeological survey revealed that the original monastery had partially been rebuilt; in the course of this reconstruction the initially one-storey northern half (facing the church) of the eastern wing was converted into a two-storey building on a stretch of about 20 metres. However, the southern half of the eastern wing continued to have just one level. The arrangement of cells was different from the one usually seen at earlier mediaeval monasteries, where the cells formed a single row around the cloister; here there were two rows, separated by a narrow corridor. The resulting cells were extremely small (2.5 x 2.5 metres). The repeated renovation of the internal level of the cells reveals that no major reconstruction took place here: the arrangement of the cells followed