The first storybook about the famous Verespatak was published, and at the best time. The Transylvanian town, which is located in a wonderful mountain environment and was threatened by cyanide gold mining, was recently included among the endangered world heritage sites.
Of course, this was greeted with a big ovation by the Romanian (green) society, while Bucharest is as deeply silent about Verespatak's Hungarian history as the golden winter in the belly of the mountain. This is why the very beautiful book, illustrated in a typical Transylvanian style, by Koinónia Kiadó in Cluj-Napoca is particularly important, because it openly talks about the Hungarian past. The miners' tales in Verespatak take me back to the times when many Hungarian words could still be heard in the town, when the local Hungarians had not yet merged with the Romanians.
The "author" himself is a gentleman named István Jánky, born into a mining family in Verespatak, who was separated from his beloved granddaughter, Sanyika, as a result of the Paris Peace of 1947. Grandpa, on the other hand, corresponded with the little boy and always sent him an exciting Verespatak story from the old days. Based on this correspondence, this hard board storybook was created, which is a great experience for adults as well as children.
Source: Balázs D. Attila/ MN
Photos: Koinónia Publishing
