If this collar had been found in France, it would be considered one of the most valuable pieces in the Louvre's collection. But luckily it's ours!
Shine on! – A new temporary exhibition titled Time of Jewelry opened in the Hungarian National Museum on October 18, 2024. The extremely high-level exhibition, realized in just a few weeks, spans the ages and shows the deeper meanings that jewels carried beyond aesthetic values.
“Tonight the jewels will have a different meaning. Not one, but several. With each of them, you can discover a different world, learn about stories and historical times. What did people decorate themselves with forty thousand years ago? They will also see the oldest jewels discovered in the Carpathian Basin"
- said Gábor Zsigmond, the director general of the Hungarian National Museum, at the opening of the exhibition, who highlighted perhaps the most important domestic discovery of recent years at the event. To the discovery that Shine! he gave his speech.
A few weeks ago, the museum's archaeologists and volunteers found a necklace from three thousand years ago on Somló Mountain. According to the director general, the context of the discovery is so exciting that if this necklace had been found in France, for example, it would be considered one of the most valuable pieces in the Louvre's collection.
But luckily, it belongs to us, the Hungarian National Museum, and we made it available for viewing in the Széchenyi Hall two weeks ago. In fact, this collar inspired this exhibition as well, and just like our archaeologists, our curators, restorers, and exhibition builders were on a mission to create another miracle at record speed. This blue collar is a world sensation, worth international news.
And this exhibition is something for which we should also travel to London or Paris, but fortunately it is here. The domestic audience can see a world-class jewelry collection, an exhibition that we are looking forward to for foreigners coming to Hungary.
said Gábor Zsigmond.
An imprint of forty thousand years
Jewelry carries a complex, often inexpressible message about the wearer, both in life and in death. These objects are made timeless and unique not only by their precious material and careful design, but also by their spiritual value, underlying content and personal connection.
The name of the exhibition Benczúr Emese Shine! was inspired by his work, which was placed at the entrance. The work of art was prepared for an exhibition organized for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017, and the director-general encouraged visitors to bravely take selfies with the cute creation and post the pictures on social media, thereby raising the profile of the exhibition.
The curators of the exhibition, Zsuzsa Hegedűs, Erika Kiss and Zsuzsa Pető, emphasized that they presented a selection of the museum's most interesting and valuable pieces following a narrative-focused curatorial concept.
and the museum's undisclosed intention is to make visitors think about the history and meaning of their own jewelry.
The history of the jewelry on display at the exhibition also includes the history of the Carpathian Basin: III. 900-year ring of King Béla and Kálmán Könyves; the mourning clothes of the Hungarian women who were worried about the fate of the nation after the 1848-49 war of independence, and who mourned the martyrs of Arad even ten years later; A picture of Ágnes Habsburg's wedding dress, as well as IV. A miniature decorating King George's right eye can also be viewed as part of the collection.
Since it is an interactive exhibition, visitors can not only admire the jewelry through the display cases, but can also immerse themselves in the world of jewelry with the help of various additional elements. They can smell the essential oils used to perfume the jewelry; they can take it in hand and experience the weight of a rector's chain; they can examine a bracelet made of hair; in addition, countless text descriptions help you navigate between the artefacts.
The exhibition spanning 40,000 years also features works from the modern era, and is also part of the collaboration with the Moholy-Nagy University of Arts. Contemporary MOME creations, jewelry and artistic reflections are housed in the museum's Dome Hall.
"The basic goal of the cooperation is for the institutions to mobilize their theoretical and practical knowledge base and their professional network in order to realize their joint professional plans. The agreement also provides the opportunity to organize joint programs and exhibitions, start an internship program, develop joint courses and other forms of training, and participate in MOME's specialized programs.
- says the museum's statement.
Featured image: Péter Papajcsik / Index
