Prohászka László: Equestrian Statues - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1997)

on the left. “It is in this relief of Medgyessy’s that reverberates most clearly with a Hungarian voice, the one exuding a domestic air most directly characteristic of the Great Hungarian Plain in general and Debrecen and the Hortobágy in particular,” says Katalin Sz. Kürti of the piece.

An interesting piece with a unique air was unveiled in Istenhegyi út (District XII.) in 1940. The Horse Trough is the work of János Kurta, who carved an idyllic, and yet frankly realistic relief into a limestone slab. Positioned in the right- hand side of the composition, the mounted horseherd watering his horses takes no active part in the scene, his presence only meant to suggest that it is not just a bunch of stray horses that is standing around the well. On the Hortobágy plains, watering is a veritable ceremony for horse and horseherd alike. Besides the horseherd’s own stallion, another five horses are visible in the relief. One of them is still greedily drinking, two have already had their fill, and there is another one which is still waiting expectantly to take a hearty drink. The focus of the piece is a mare milking its foal. Below the weather-beaten relief are the lines:

Treat your faithful beast with tender care,

Don’t beat nor lash me, of the whip beware.

When I haue done my stint fresh water let me drink, When I am worn and cold a blanket for me bring.

Don’t overburden me or lash my back with savage force You please your maker when you spare your horse.

Besides having a predilection for folklore elements, János Kurta liked a certain discipline in his compositions. His work has rightly been described as being characterised by a mastery of concise, terse and unified composition.

The history of equestrian statues made between the world wars ends with the description of another ornamental fountain. The new hub of District XI, an area undergoing dynamic expansion from the twenties, was the square originally named after Miklós Horthy but now called Móricz Zsigmond körtér. A modern terminus building was erected in 1942 on one side of the square to serve the tram and local train lines ending here. It was in the small inner courtyard of this circular construction that László Szomor’s fascinating AncientHungarian Well was installed. The side of this circular well is decorated by three, overlapping reliefs.

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