In the footsteps of our ancestors in Asia - The discovery of today's remnants of Eastern Hungarians, an exhibition will open on April 29, 2022 in the Pasarét Community Hall. At the exhibition, those interested can see photographs taken during the Asian field researches of protohistorian Mihály Benkő. The unique photo exhibition is organized with the support of the National Cultural Fund, with the cooperation of the Barsz Hungarian-Kazakh Foundation.

In 1989, Mihály Benkő set out to search for parallels in the burial customs of the proto-Hungarians among the Kazakhs who followed the nomadic way of life, as a continuation of his previous research. The direction of his research soon changed when he met members of a minority of people who call themselves Hungarians and "the people of the deer" in Western Mongolia, in the Mongolian Altai. After that, he found out about the research results of anthropologist Tibor Tóth in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan István Erdélyi .

After discovering the Hungarians living among the Kazakhs in Western Mongolia, he also visited the Hungarians in Kazakhstan and, based on their guidance, also the Hungarians living in Western Siberia.

He collected oral sources and sayings, took photos of them, and researched written memories (genealogical tables, epitaphs). the book entitled " In the Footsteps of Our Ancestors, in Asia", published by Tortoma Kiadó in Transylvania for his 80th birthday in 2020

The current exhibition presents photographic documentation of 18 years of field research.

Gyula László wrote the following about Mihály Benkő's photos:

"Mihály Benkő's photographs represent a first-rate increase in the research of Hungarian prehistory, because they provide news about what was destroyed in the earth/graves and settlements: everyday life. We see the yurt with the life inside it, we see the winter and summer grazing habits, the everyday life of families, horse tools, saddlery, fun, good humor, cemeteries, landscapes, mountain pastures and summer accommodation, in short, everything that can remind us of the life of our ancestors . This series of photographs is a great value, thanks to Mihály Benkő."

Source: Vasarnap.hu

Picture: Mihály Benkő