Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the Gothic and Renaissance Halls, the Royal Cellar and the vaulted Tower Chapel (1320)
dedicated to St Stephen.
On the ground floor, exhibits showcase Budapest during the Middle Ages, with dozens of
important Gothic statues, heads and fragments of courtiers, squires and saints discovered
during excavations in 1974. There are also artefacts recovered from a well in 1999 that date
back to the Middle Ages, notably a 14th-century tapestry of the Hungarian coat of arms with
the
fleur-de-lis
of King Charles Robert's House of Anjou. A wonderful new exhibit on the
1st floor called '1000 Years of a Capital' traces the history of Budapest from the arrival of
the Magyars and the Turkish occupation to modern times in 10 multimedia sections, taking
an interesting and very intelligent look at housing, ethnic diversity, religion and other such
issues over the centuries. The excellent audioguide is 1200Ft.
TIV
TIVAADAR K
AR KOSSZTTKA C
A CSONT
SONTVÁÁRY
Many critics consider Tivadar Kosztka Csontváry - a symbolist artist whose tra-
gic life is sometimes compared with that of his contemporary, Vincent van Gogh
- to be Hungary's greatest painter. Csontváry produced his major works in just
half a dozen years starting in 1903 when he was 50. His efforts met with praise at
his first exhibition in 1907 in Paris, but critics panned his work at a showing in
Budapest the following year. He died penniless just after WWI. View his works, in-
cluding
Ruins of the Greek Theatre at Taormina
(1905) and
Pilgrimage to the
Cedars of Lebanon
(1907), on the 1st floor of the Hungarian National Gallery's
Building C.
The Gothic statues found in the outer bailey of the Royal Palace in 1974 are a
treasure trove for social historians. They total almost 80 and portray both com-
moners and aristocrats of both sexes. They are invaluable tools in the research of
medieval dress, hairstyles and personal effects.
National Széchenyi Library
3700;
www.oszk.hu
;
I Szent György tér 4-6, Building F; 9am-8pm, stacks to 7pm Tue-Sat; 16)
con-
tains codices and manuscripts, a large collection of foreign newspapers and a copy of
everything published in Hungary or the Hungarian language. It was founded in 1802 by
Count Ferenc Széchenyi, father of the heroic István, who endowed it with 15,000 books and
