Műemlékvédelem folyóirat (Budapest, 1990)

MŰEMLÉKVÉDELEM REVIEW OF THE HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE AND OF CONSERVATION OF HISTORICAL MONUMENTS Year XXXIV. 1990 No. 2. Intendance National of Historical monuments Editor in Chief: dr. László Gerő Published by: Hírlapkiadó V. Budapest VIII., Blaha Lujza tér 3. SUMMARY OF ARTICLES AND ILLUSTRATIONS Zsolt Jékely, Director General of the National Inspectorate of Monuments, held a lecture at the Commission of Architectural History and Theory of the Hungaryan Academy of Sciences. He spoke about the protection of monuments as part of society’s environmental culture and said that a monument is living and impressive only if it can be used rationally. After 1945 the continuity of cultural life was broken off in several regions of this country. Our world of isolated farms, our villages wasted away. What will the task of monument protection be in a country becoming democratic? In the sixties the state realised the propagandistic value of succesful protective work that is equal to European comparisons and therefore began to support the protection of monuments. Castles, ruins, ecclesiastic edifices, even entire town districts were renewed in this way. In the opinion of the lecturer a scientific evaluation of our architectural heritage, more complete than before, is required now.What would be necessary is a topography of monuments comprising the entire country. Training and views of those entrusted whith the handling of such buildings, their soccesful inctruction are of exterme importance, Mr. Jékely takes a positive and reasoned stand against any partition of this protective work among local authorities. However important economic considerations may be, the protection of monuments must not be of purely enterpreneural nature, but successful enterprise should at the same time serve the task of protecting monuments. Society as a whole must take part on every level in the protection of monuments. Local initiative and spontaneous activities are of decistive importance here. And this cannot be the task of a remote centre alone. We may count on a successful and refined protection of

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