Mentényi Klára szerk.: Műemlékvédelmi Szemle 2002/1. szám Az Országos Műemléki Felügyelőség tájékoztatója (Budapest, 2002)

MŰHELY - Somorjay Sélysette: Topográfiai Kutatások a Kulturális Örökségvédelmi Hivatalnál

Sélysette SOMORJAY TOPOGRAPHIC RESEARCH IN THE NATIONAL OFFICE OF CULTURAL HERITAGE The National Office of Cultural Heritage has organized a one day conference on the 19

th November, 2002. with the purpose of giving a survey of the topographic research in the country and creating the possibility of meeting the experts and forming the future of topographic research on the basis of the experiences. The meeting was made necessary by the fact that the organisation of monument protection was deservedly criticised by experts and authorities concerned because of the lack of topographies, inventories, and lists, although research has lately been carried on in an increasing extent as far as possible. As publishing the results of this research is taking years, it seems to be necessary to inform experts concerning the work, and to co-ordinate it with similar research work in other institutions for the optimal use of financial and intellectual capacities. This study is a longer version of the lecture given at the conference. The history of topographic research is reaching back to the 19

th century in Hungary. The presentation of the period preceding World War II. was the subject of another lecture published later. Following the break after World War II. research has started almost immediately on the basis of the principles elaborated formerly and in the 1950's-60's the topographies of Buda, the counties Pest, Nógrád, then in the 70's the three volumes of Heves were published. From this time on however a constant decline could be experienced, in 1986 the manuscript of the topography of Szabolcs-Szatmár county appeared after ten year of press preparation and basically shortened, as the last production of the common topographic activity of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the monument protection organisation. During the following 25 years different initiatives were taken to continue topographies but they resulted a series of failures. It was the period of incalculable and ever decreasing financing characterised by the strengthening criticism of the slowness and failure of topographic work. The need of a topographic programme surveying all the monuments was becoming stronger expressed with the terms of making inventories, showing the values in smaller topographies, showing that instead of the great volumes new, quicker and more effective forms were awaited. The 1997 monument protection law and the new heritage protection law of 2001 determined the research of monument as the first and basic task of monument protection, and this resulted a turn in financing. For the first time in 2000, and in the following two years an increasing amount of money was given to topographic research. For the purpose of the most effective use of money a programme has been worked out built on two basic points: the quickest research of the widest possible range of monuments and the publication of classic topographies based on the research of sources. It must be admitted that art historical topographies are not only handbooks of art history, but necessary background for basic and effective monument protection work. A research pro-