Country House Museums

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.

Those who honored the lifestyle of the peasantry first noticed the architectural wonders of Hungarian folk architecture in the 19th century. However, the protection of these buildings only began after WW II. when an act enacted their protection in 1949. Then, in the 50's the concept of folk architecture was declared. Research work to find these buildings began all over the country.
The National Inspectorate of National Listed Buildings was founded, a list of monuments was made. Two methods was worked out to preserve folk architecture: the buildings were either moved to open-air museums or was declared a listed building which was often opened for the visitors. Country houses belong to the latter. The Counsel of Ministers resolved in 1974 to nationalize the listed buildings that cannot be preserved otherwise. Due to a sponsoring of 30 million forints, country houses, open-air museums, homestead museum and local collections were established to show the characteristics of the lifestyles of people of villages.
Behind each exhibition there was a different point of view, the museums were created with varied philosophies. The accepted expression for houses where important buildings from the point of view of folk architecture was furnished with folk traditional objects and furniture was accepted.
Not only objects are part of the exhibitions in the country houses but the building itself is an organic part of it. A real country house remembers a period and the characteristics of the traditions, the lifestyle, sometimes even the farming of a region.
The country houses in Hungary provide a real time travel for the visitors. The contemporary interiors from the Settlement of 1867 until the 1950's show changes in the culture of the peasantry. The visitors may learn of the different regions, the typical social layers, nationalities, traditions, the differences of lifestyles and some of the secrets of trades.

List of main country house museums:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.

Events calendar

2012.

May