statue

Budapest BLM statue: fenced, covered in paint, demolished, smashed

Yesterday, a rainbow-coloured statue in honour of the Black Lives Matter movement was inaugurated in Budapest. According to the plans, it would have stayed in the ninth district of the Hungarian capital for two weeks. However, the statue could not stand there for as long.

It was revealed earlier that a work related to the BLM movement would be exhibited in Budapest. This was opposed by many, including the Our Homeland Movement, who said the statue was “an anti-European, anti-white, anti-heterosexual, and anti-Christian symbol”. However, the statue had been made, and it was inaugurated yesterday.

It was planned that the rainbow-coloured statue would have been displayed until April 14th. However, in the time since the statue was erected,

the statue was fenced up, then doused with paint, and demolished and smashed on Friday morning.

Péter Szalay, the creator of the statue, said that he did not want to create political propaganda, but the fact that many people reacted this way is very telling. In August 2020, the 9th district of Budapest announced a competition for independent public works. The professional jury selected six works that were to be exhibited at different points in the district. However, only the work of Péter Szalay had such an adventurous journey.

In addition to the Our Homeland Movement, Zsolt Bayer, a Fidesz insider, said earlier that the statue would be demolished immediately after it was erected. Although Bayer had nothing to do with it, members of the Legion Hungaria far-right organisation tore down the statue. A video of the sculpture was also made, which was later deleted. It was added to the video: “Yesterday, it was set up by the left district government, and we demolished it this morning, true to our previous promises. Of course, the police acted immediately, caught Béla Incze, a member of the leadership of our Movement, who demolished the statue.”

The barely one-metre statue was hit by 3 attacks in one day.

According to Péter Szalay, the fate of the statue is also symbolic. The creator reckoned that the statue would not last for a day. He added that there was nothing ideological to say about the work itself. “It’s not a thing that speaks against either side. There’s no claim in it that Black Lives Matter or this is pro-homosexual. And there’s no message that the BLM is bad,” said Szalay.

The statue was previously exhibited in a private gallery, where no one had a problem with the work. “Even yesterday, I thought that the statue would not be harmed. I thought that the citizens of Budapest were mature enough to watch a public statue and not hurt it. Therefore, I am a little disappointed now,” said Krisztina Baranyi, the mayor of the district, to telex.hu.

There are no plans to replace the statue.

However, the owner of a collection from Szombathely has already applied for the broken work, and the statue can probably take a break. At least what is left of it.

April 3, 2021

Rainbow-coloured Black Lives Matter statue inaugurated in Budapest

A one-metre-tall rainbow-coloured Black Lives Matter statue has been erected in Ferenc Square in Budapest’s 9th District. A tender was announced last August to have independent public works on the city streets again. A professional jury selected six works from the submitted entries, out of which four were exhibited today.

Needless to say, the project sparked serious anger in recent months. Some threatened to overthrow it, while others (such as the Our Homeland Movement) claim that it is an “anti-European, anti-white, anti-heterosexual, and anti-Christian symbol”.

According to the plans, the rainbow-coloured statue will be exhibited in Ferenc Square until April 14. It is one metre high and was created by Péter Szalay using 3D printing technology. The sculpture paraphrases the New York Statue of Liberty in a kneeling pose with a raised fist, referring to American footballer Colin Kaepernick’s gesture, which became a symbol of the anti-racist movement.

The professional jury evaluated the work of Péter Szalay as follows: “It is a paraphrase of a public memorial sculpture that surfaces current social and political issues: Black Lives Matter and prejudices about LGBTQ. The kneeling gesture of the sculpture also refers to the sculptural decision-making movements in the public space, so it also reflects the current situation of the work of art.

According to Telex, the idea came from the deputy mayor of the district because she wanted to put an end to the practice of making sculptures and other public works in Hungary only on political orders.

Krisztina Baranyi, the mayor of Ferencváros, previously told Euronews that she thinks it is important to set up the installation in Budapest because the BLM goals against racism and police brutality are as relevant in Hungary as anywhere else. As an example, she mentioned the Orbán government’s “relentless campaign” against migrants and refugees, as well as the systematic discrimination against the Roma in Hungary.

The Head of the Prime Minister’s Office, Gergely Gulyás, said in December that the Black Lives Matter in the United States is essentially a racist movement that does not recognise equality, which should be a normal human right by 20th century standards. Therefore, the racist is not the person who opposes the erection of such a statue but the one who erects the statue, Gulyás said.

UPDATE

The statue was only able to stand undisturbed for a few hours due to far-right protesters. According to Azonnali, protesters from Legion Hungary and Our Homeland simply boarded up the rainbow-coloured statue, so it could not even be seen.

UPDATE 2

Telex writes the statue was knocked down around half past eight in the morning, while the police were there in the square anyway because they were out on the scene all night. According to reports, the perpetrators did not want to run away from the police. The statue has been surrounded by police tapes.

blm-demonstration protest black lives matter

Read alsoA Black Lives Matter Statue to be erected in Budapest

April 1, 2021

Buda Castle’s Turul statue flew away – PHOTOS, VIDEO

The turul statue, a symbol of Hungarians, standing on the top of the Buda Castle did not actually fly away, of course; it was removed for restoration works.

Due to its run-down condition, the turul statue was removed by a massive crane so that experts can do their magic and restore it into its original glory in their open-air restorer workshop set up on Savoyai terrace, as reported origo.hu.

In the upcoming months, those visiting the Castle, once the home of Hungarian Queen Sisi, can take a look at the recovery works. The statue, which has been towering above the Hungarian capital for almost 120 years, is one of the most outstanding parts of the Palace district of the Buda Castle.

The work of art of Gyula Balog was erected in 1905 during the 100^th anniversary of the Palace’s construction,

on the corner of the ornamented fence of the Habsburg Gate.

The enormous bronze monument holds a sword in its claws while looking towards the Danube with its wings wide open, ready to fly at any second. The statue representing the legendary bird featured in Hungarian mythology is a considerable work just by its size in itself:

it is 10.5 metres tall, the distance between its open wings reaches 12.5 metres.

Its stone pedestal is decorated with Hungary’s crest.

The bird survived the Second World War, though with several damages, for which smaller and bigger corrections and maintenance works were necessary. However, its condition has deteriorated significantly since then, so complete reconstruction will be carried out under the National Hauszmann Programme.

As in the case of the recently restored bronze statues of the Mátyás well, experts will conclude restorer and polishing works to preserve the patina layer. All damages on the surface will be corrected, and the statue’s inner iron case will be strengthened.

Works will be carried out in an open-air workshop on the Savoyai terrace

before carrying the country’s symbol, in its brand new glory, back to its home.

The Habsburg Gate situated right next to the statue, the ornamented fence and the stairs belonging to them unfortunately also suffered severe damage in WWII. Reparation works were done on them in the 1980s; however, the last decades have left their mark. Their complete renovation work has become absolutely necessary due to the deterioration of their condition. Stone elements of the Habsburg Gate will be cleaned, its cracks will be filled and fixed and last, but not least, its wrought-iron structure will be completely renovated.

During the reconstruction works, walking through the Habsburg Gate and the Terrace of the Fishing Children, unfortunately, will not be possible, for which a temporary pavement will be built to enable anyone interested in taking a glimpse at the works to reach the Savoyai terrace.

Read alsoSisi’s lost treasures found at the Buda Castle excavations – PHOTO GALLERY

March 3, 2021

The symbolic meaning of the Heroes’ Square in Budapest – PHOTOS

In the first half of the 20^th century, many statues and sculptures were erected in several symbolic squares of Budapest. At first glance, they seem to be easy to understand, but in reality, their message or the meaning behind them is much more profound. The Heroes’ Square is one of these places, having a significant meaning that formed Hungarian identity.

Sculptures and monuments of public places were born in different historical situations under differing circumstances. If we take a look at the symbolism they represent, we can find sacral and profane meanings. In a very short period, many massive sculptures and groups of sculptures were set up in the most iconic and emblematic squares of the capital. Some of them have an easily understandable meaning, while others act as complex emblems representing a specific moment of Hungarian history. Today, we will take a look at probably the most well-known and most popular square of the capital, the Heroes’ Square.

Let’s start with the very centre of the place. The high corinthian column standing in the middle is crowned by archangel Gabriel’s statue, holding the Holy Crown in his hand. The relatively big creation was introduced in 1900 by György Zala at the Paris Exposition (Exposition Universelle) and instantly was rewarded with a gold medal by the jury – writes pestbuda.hu.

In one hand, archangel Gabriel holds up towards the sky the Holy Crown representing the Hungarian State’s 1000-year-old history, while in his other hand he rests the Patriarchal cross, the universal religious symbol of Christianity.

When Zala presented his exquisite creation, he was already working on other sculptures that would later end up giving further grandeur, in my opinion, to the most superior square of Budapest. The Millennium Monument, of which archangel Gabriel is practically the centrepiece, has become the pool of different symbols. The Corinthian column is surrounded by a high pedestal and the statues of the Seven Chieftains of the Magyars, on their horses. (The seven chieftains were the leaders of the seven tribes of the Hungarians when they arrived in the Carpathian Basin in the 9^th century.) This lower level of the sculpture leads us way back in history to an authentic and realistic world. The Hungarian conquest is not only represented in the art of György Zala but also the monumental paintings of Mihály Munkácsy and Árpád Feszty. Their works, back in the beginning of the 20^th century were exhibited in the Museum of Fine Arts standing on one side of the square, as well as in a gazebo built in the City Park.

*Millennium Monument – photo: Wikipedia*

The seven leaders together with archangel Gabriel do not only tell the story of the Hungarian conquest and Saint Stephen I creating the basis of Christianity in the country, but thanks to the Corinthian column, the ancient Greek and Roman world is also present.

During the rule of Trajan, a Roman emperor, columns were erected in Rome, representing victory and telling the story of conqueror campaigns with the help of embossments. In the case of the Millennium Monument, embossments narrating the victorious moments of our nation are not found on the column itself, but on the pedestals under the statues. The two museum buildings on the two sides of the square, designed by architect Albert Schickedanz, evoke antiquity.

The Museum of Fine Arts is situated on the right side, if you are in front of the square with Andrássy Avenue behind you, while the Budapest Hall of Art or Palace of Art stands just right across the square on the left of the column. Although the latter was ready by 1896, the small triangle on its façade was left empty without any decoration, until 1938 when in celebration of Saint Stephen I, a beautiful mosaic was created to adorn the building, called “Saint Stephen, the patron of Arts”.

*Museum of Fine Arts – photo: Wikipedia – Marc Ryckaert*

This mosaic in a Christian spirituality created a contrast with the naked statues revoking Greek-Roman belief standing on the façade of the Museum of Fine Arts, just opposite the Hall of Arts on the other side of the square.

*Budapest Hall of Art – photo: Wikipedia*

When the Treaty of Trianon was signed the 4 June 1920 causing Hungary to lose two-thirds of its territory, it left a tragic mark. One of the first protests against Trianon was held in front of the Millenium Monument, most precisely in front of the statue of Árpád, one of the seven chieftains. In 1929 the monument was completed by building a symbolic tomb dedicated to all those who had fallen in the First World War. Remembering these heroes, since 1932 the square is called Heroes’ Square.

Read alsoDid you know?! – 5 interesting facts about Budapest’s iconic spot, the Heroes’ Square

February 9, 2021

Guess which American president is going to get a statue in Budapest?

The Hungarian government is to unveil a statue of George Herbert Walker Bush, the 41st President of the United States, to mark the 30th anniversary of the fall of communist rule in central and eastern Europe.

According to a joint statement by the head of the Prime Minister’s Office, Gergely Gulyas, and the US Ambassador to Hungary David Cornstein on Sunday, the statue will be unveiled in Szabadsag Square, nearby the US embassy, on October 23.

It said appreciation and gratitude “to the statesman who helped shape the future of Europe and Hungary” would thereby be expressed by both countries, adding that Bush had stood up for democracy and opposed the communist dictatorship.

The statue of Bush Sr, the first US president to visit Budapest while in office,

will stand next to an existing statue of President Ronald Reagan, symbolising, in Reagan’s words, the common struggle of these two leaders to eliminate “the evil empire”.

During his long career and as president and vice president, Bush Sr. gained recognition for helping to end the Cold War and aiding democracies in central and eastern Europe, the statement said.

The statue is being unveiled 30 years after the fall of the Iron Curtain, the reunification of Germany and Europe, when

freedom and democracy “triumphed” in central and eastern Europe,

and when “the Hungarian people ended the dark era of communism and embarked on the path of freedom”.

The statement added that ties between the US and Hungary “have flourished” since, noting their alliance within NATO and as trading partners. President Bush contributed indelibly to the renewal of relations between the two countries, the statement said.

September 6, 2020

Trump slams removal of controversial monuments amid nationwide racial reckoning at Mount Rushmore

U.S. President Donald Trump visited Mount Rushmore in the midwestern state South Dakota on Friday to kick off Independence Day weekend, slamming the removal of controversial monuments amid nationwide racial reckoning as “a merciless campaign” in attempts to wipe out U.S. history.

“Our nation is witnessing a merciless campaign to wipe out our history, defame our heroes, erase our values and indoctrinate our children,” Trump said when addressing the Fourth of July fireworks celebration at Mount Rushmore.

The president slammed a “new far-left fascism” in media and schools and “cancel culture,” describing those protesters targeting monuments which they think are symbols of racial oppression as “angry mobs.”

Read alsoTrump says “probably” sending U.S. troops from Germany to Poland

“Those who seek to erase our heritage want Americans to forget our pride and our great dignity, so that we can no longer understand ourselves or America’s destiny,” Trump said.

“This monument will never be desecrated,” Trump said of Mt. Rushmore Memorial.

“Mount Rushmore will stand forever as an eternal tribute to our forefathers and our freedom.”

Tackling the divisive issue with a divisive speech, the president was trying to rev up his conservative base four months before the general elections, some local analysts say.

Trump has been under growing pressure amid the surge of newly reported coronavirus cases and the continuous nationwide reckoning of the country’s racial injustice and police brutality, they observed.

The president’s remarks also came as local Indigenous leaders and others have called for the monument to be removed, noting it was carved on sacred tribal land.

“Nothing stands as a greater reminder to the Great Sioux Nation of a country that cannot keep a promise or treaty than the faces carved into our sacred land on what the United States calls Mount Rushmore,” Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Chairman Harold Frazier said in a statement condemning Mount Rushmore and the Trump event.

About 15 protesters were arrested on Friday after they blocked an access road to Mount Rushmore hours before Trump’s arrival, local media reported.

Mount Rushmore was previously called “The Six Grandfathers” by the Lakota Sioux before it was carved with the presidents’ faces. It sits on land considered sacred by local tribes and was initially protected for their use until gold was discovered in the area and Indigenous peoples were forced off the land, according to a report from The Hill.

Read alsoTourism returns as second half of 2020 begins

The Mount Rushmore fireworks displays had been stopped beginning in 2009 as a result of the risk of wildfires, but Trump has moved to revive the display this year, said a report from The Hill. No social distancing was planned for the event drawing thousands of people, most of them without masks.

Trump is expected to be back in Washington and deliver remarks from the White House on Saturday at the 2020 “Salute to America,” an event that will include multiple flyovers by military aircraft and a 35-minute fireworks display over the city.

Infections are up in at least 36 U.S. states as the country heads into the Independence Day weekend, according to a CNN tally on Friday. Much of the country has cancelled or scaled back traditional celebrations and events for the weekend as health experts warn that large gatherings could lead to spikes in COVID-19 cases at a time when the country is already experiencing significant surges.

July 4, 2020

Trump returns to rally stage amid coronavirus concerns, national reckoning over racism

U.S. President Donald Trump held his first rally in more than three months in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Saturday evening, amid coronavirus concerns and a national reckoning over racism.

Speaking to a crowd of supporters inside the BOK Center, Trump touted his policies and judicial nominees, tore into Democrats and media, and touched upon a series of national issues, including the coronavirus pandemic, which has infected more than 2.2 million people and taken nearly 120,000 lives in the United States.

The president blamed the numbers on testing, a claim that has been widely disputed.

“When you do testing to that extent, you are gonna find more people, you’re gonna find more cases. So I said to my people slow the testing down please,” he said.

“They test and they test. We have tests that people don’t know what’s going on.”

Read alsoTrump signs executive order on policing

Trump made the remarks only hours after his campaign spokesman revealed that six staffers helping organizing the Tulsa rally have tested positive for the coronavirus.

A White House official told reporters later that Trump was joking about slowing down testing.

Attendees of the rally, who have been asked to sign a waiver releasing the Trump campaign from responsibility for possible exposure to the coronavirus, received a mask from organizers before entering the event, but most of them didn’t wear it inside the arena, which can hold 19,000 people.

Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a key member of the White House coronavirus task force, has said that he wouldn’t personally attend rallies.

“I’m in a high risk category. Personally, I would not. Of course not,” Fauci told an interview with Daily Beast earlier this week, adding that when it came to Trump’s rallies “outside is better than inside, no crowd is better than crowd” and “crowd is better than big crowd.”

The Saturday rally also came as U.S. states and cities have begun removing statues of Confederate figures amid a national reckoning over police brutality and racism sparked by the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African American man, who died on May 25 after a white police officer kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

Read alsoTrump announces cutting U.S. troops in Germany to 25,000

Floyd’s death has triggered weeks-long demonstrations across the country, as well as calls from lawmakers and activists for the removal of monuments in memory of figures believed to be symbols of racism, while some Confederate statues have already been toppled by protesters.

During his nearly two-hour remarks on Saturday, Trump slammed the movement.

“The unhinged left-wing mob is trying to vandalize our history, desecrate our monuments, our beautiful monuments, tear down our statues, and punish, cancel and persecute anyone who does not conform to their demands for absolute and total control. We’re not conforming,” he said.

Trump also spoke at length complaining about media coverage of his slow walk down a ramp after giving the commencement address at the U.S. Military Academy, also known as West Point, last week, which has fueled questions about his health.

He explained that he was wearing “leather-bottom shoes” and that the ramp “was like an ice-skating rink,” stressing that “I can’t fall with the fake news watching.”

There were multiple groups of demonstrators with varying viewpoints in the area adjacent to the rally, but the Tulsa Police Department tweeted Saturday night, “Overwhelmingly these encounters have been peaceful.”

The rally was previously scheduled on Friday, the Juneteenth, a day that memorializes the end of slavery in the United States, but Trump rescheduled it for Saturday after strong pushback, as Tulsa was home to one of the worst incidents of racial violence in the nation’s history, where dozens of African Americans were massacred 99 years ago.

Trump’s last rally was held in Charlotte, North Carolina on March 2.

June 21, 2020

Trianon 100 – Orbán: Hungary winning again

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said Hungary is “winning again” in a speech at the inauguration of a monument in Satoraljaujhely, in the northeast of the country, to mark the 100th anniversary of the Trianon Peace Treaty on Saturday.

“There is not a single nation in the world that could have endured such a century, but we have not only endured, today we are winning again,” Orbán said.

“The era of a hundred years of solitude is over. It is uplifting that we have allies again, we have good neighbours, and we can prepare for the future together,” he added.

Orbán said the next decade will not be about eclipses and losses, but about prosperity and nation-building.

“It is our generation that can turn the fate of Hungary, that can complete the mission and bring the country to the gates of victory, but the decisive battle must be fought by the generation after us, they must take the final steps,” he said.

trianon100 turul statue — Photo: MTI/Czeglédi Zsolt

He added that it would not be easy, but it would be worth it: “great times are ahead of you”.

Read alsoTrianon 100 – Hungarian parties commemorate Trianon centenary

Speaking at the “Hungarian Calvary”, a monument to the cities lost to Hungary after the Trianon Treaty was signed, Orbán said Hungarians had not disappeared but had “established a homeland here, preserving our unique quality”.

“We defended ourselves against the attacks of the Western empires, we recovered from the devastation left by the pagans from the East, defining and maintaining our place in Europe. Hungary was a strong and independent state for 400 years, then we struggled against the Ottoman Empire for 300 years, then after 200 years of failed uprisings and fights for freedom we entered the gates of the 20th century as a partner nation of a great European empire,” he said.

“Although many Hungarians fell on the battlefields over the centuries, the whole world could see that if we are struck down, we stand up again and again,” he added.

Orbán said that women have a special place at the Hungarian Calvary, as they have “always made up for our losses”.

“We owe it to our women that the art of survival and nation-building is in our genes. We owe it to them that we are the European champions of survival,” he said.

“We did not become a German province, a Turkish vilayet or a Soviet republic. We Hungarians are a great, culture-building and state-organising nation,” Orban said.

Read alsoTrianon 100 – Orbán: Hungary winning again

He said that Hungary had later been “stabbed in the back by the conspiracies in Budapest” and “the country was handed over to our enemies, the government to the Bolsheviks”.

“The West raped the thousand-year-old borders and history of Central Europe. They forced us to live between indefensible borders, deprived us of our natural treasures, separated us from our resources, and made a death row out of our country. Central Europe was redrawn without moral concerns. We will never forget that they did this,” he said.

“After World War II we were thrown to the Communists without heartache. The reward of the Poles, the Czechs and the Slovaks was the same as our punishment. May this be an eternal lesson for the peoples of Central Europe!” Orbán said.

“There have been many who wished to bury Hungary,” he said, adding that “we were never willing to attend our own funeral”.

“Today, there is no Czechoslovakia, no Yugoslavia nor a Soviet Union. There is no British or French empire,” he said.

“We Hungarians, on the other hand, will remain….We remain because we are at home. We are at home and therefore we remain,” he added.

“Hungarians are contracting and expanding like the human heart, but we have been living for a thousand and a hundred years where our great state founders chose our place,” he said.

“We need to live with the self-confidence and attitude of a nation that knows it has given more to the world than it has received from it. Our performance entitles us to continue our history. And today we also need to know that we have had worse borders, yet we are here,” he added.

“We are happy to build the common future with Slovakia, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia, which are proud of their national identity. History has given the chance, perhaps the last, for the peoples of Central Europe to open a new era,” he said.

In the last ten years, Orbán said, we have proven to our neighbours that if the vitality of the Hungarian national fragments adds up, it is good not only for us, but also for them.

“Only the state has borders, the nation does not,” he said. “Those who have yet to understand it would do better to hurry because they’re running out of time,” he added.

“We haven’t been this strong in a hundred years. Our political, spiritual, economic and cultural gravitational force is growing day by day. The return of Hungarians has begun,” he said.

“Strength comes with responsibility, and we are aware of the weight of our responsibility,” he added.

“We express our heartfelt gratitude and our highest appreciation to our separated national communities for a century of endurance and loyalty to the Hungarian nation and their homeland,” Orbán said.

June 6, 2020

Did you know?! – 8 surprising facts about Budapest!

Budapest is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Therefore, more and more tourists come to visit the “Jewel Box” of Hungary. Still, there are several interesting facts about Budapest that might be surprising not only for tourists but for the majority of Hungarians as well. Let us see which are these! 😉

The image of goulash

The popular Hungarian “goulash” soup has a different image abroad – visitors usually expect a stew-based dish, similar to the domestic beef stew, rather than the real Hungarian goulash.

The tasteful soup is very popular among tourists; accordingly, several travel blogs mention the Hungarian speciality that should not be missed out on when visiting Hungary. 😉

Vajdahunyad Castle was originally made of cardboard

As Magyarorszagom reports, the castle was originally built for a temporary exhibition; therefore, its first “version” was made of cardboard and wood. However, it became so popular among visitors that not much later, in 1904, its stable version was built.

Budapest gives home to the largest European ice rink

Since 1870, the City Park Ice Rink is one of the most popular attractions during wintertime, along with its beautiful surroundings.

In the vicinity of Heroes’ Square, we can find the continent’s largest ice rink, which is undoubtedly the most-visited skating rink in Budapest.

In the last few years, several renovations were carried out, enhancing the beauty of the area. The 12,070 m² skating rink also provides an opportunity for skate rental, so nothing can stop you from enjoying the joys of ice skating. 😉

Pestbuda vs. Budapest

Another interesting fact about Budapest is that after the unification of the three parts – Buda, Pest, and Óbuda – in 1873, the Hungarian capital was almost denominated as Pestbuda.

Read alsoInteresting facts about Hungary

Read also6 interesting facts about Hungary that you might not know

Saint Gerard Statue

Saint Gerard Statue is a real jewel of Budapest; however, its interesting history is not widely known. Gerard was making a pilgrimage to Palestine, where Saint Stephen asked him to help convert the pagan Hungarians to Christianity. Unfortunately, the efforts were useless, and by the death of St. Stephen, St. Gerard could not be protected anymore. The pagan nation immediately took advantage of the opportunity and caught him.

Gerard was rolled down from the hill in a barrel. His statue is located exactly at the point where he was killed. At the foot of the statue, some pagan Hungarians stare at St. Gerard, who intensely holds his cross towards the sky.

Budapest – Spa Capital of the World

Budapest gives home to the largest number of spas; accordingly, it also bears the title “Spa Capital of the World”. As bpromantikaja.blog.hu reports, the Hungarian capital was also elected as the perpetual seat of the International Spa Association in 1937 thanks to its 118 medical sources, wells, and five still-operating historic thermal baths.

Thermal water under Heroes’ Square

Heroes Square Budapest — *Image: Pixabay*

Few may know that Heroes’ Square has a hidden secret underground. 140 years ago, in 1877, Vilmos Zsigmond, a mining engineer, found thermal water here. The 74-degree-hot healing water is more than 800 metres deep under the surface.

Budapest’s Chicago

Erzsébetváros — *Image: www.facebook.com/erzsebetvarosofficial/*

District 7 of Budapest (Elizabeth City) was also called ‘Chicago’ between 1896 and 1898, after this separate part of the capital was built between Rottenbiller-Damjanich-Dózsa György streets.

The parallel structure of the zone was similar to Chicago, which used to be the “supercity” of that age, so residents of Budapest started to use this label more and more frequently.

February 2, 2020

Monument of National Martyrs inaugurated in Budapest

A reconstructed post-WWI monument dedicated to the martyrs of the communist Red Terror in 1919 was inaugurated by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and House Speaker László Kövér next to Parliament on Thursday.

“We are commemorating the victims of political terror today,” Kövér said, referring to the assassination of former prime minister István Tisza 101 years ago.

The house speaker said that “the 1,000 or so people who took the entire country hostage after the 1919 communist takeover were driven by angry anti-Christianism, ardent internationalism, an intense hate of the nation, conscious efforts to disintegrate families and false slogans”.

The Hungarian republic of councils, lasting for 133 days in 1919, claimed over 500 victims.

The monument unveiled today replaced a memorial of Imre Nagy, Hungary’s prime minister during the 1956 revolution, which was relocated to nearby Jászai Mari Square earlier this year.

October 31, 2019

Statue of football great Sándor Kocsis unveiled at Groupama Aréna

A statue of the great Hungarian footballer Sándor Kocsis, a prolific scorer who was a member of the Mighty Magyars, the national football team of the 1950s, was unveiled near the main entrance to Budapest’s Groupama Arena stadium on Saturday, on the 90th anniversary of Kocsis’s birth.

Kocsis played for the Budapest clubs Ferencváros and Honved as well as for FC Barcelona. He was the top goal scorer in the 1954 World Cup with eleven goals.

Speaking at the ceremony, Budapest Mayor István Tarlós noted that Kocsis had scored 75 goals in 68 appearances for Hungary, making his goal/game average among the highest ever.

“Seeing his technical solutions, his header bravura, his acrobatic style of play and his exceptional team play, he was said to be among the greatest after just a few matches,” Tarlós said of his favourite footballer.

Kocsis’s son, Sándor Kocsis Jr, said it was his father’s dream to return to the place where he felt he had always belonged.

Groupama Arena is home to Ferencváros, the team Kocsis joined when he was just 17 years old.

September 22, 2019

Hungary, Serbia presidents attend Hunyadi monument inauguration

A monument to 15th century strategist and politician John Hunyadi was inaugurated in Zemun (Zimony) outside Belgrade, in a ceremony attended by the presidents of Hungary and Serbia, on Monday.

János Áder, the Hungarian president, highlighted Hunyadi’s victory in the 1456 Battle of Belgrade as the beginning of an era of peace and reconstruction. Hunyadi dedicated his whole life to protecting the homeland from the Ottoman Empire, he said, adding that for 65 years afterwards the Ottomans did not even attempt to capture Belgrade.

The bells of Christian churches in Europe rung at midday “have reminded all Europeans for 563 years of the courage, heroism, sacrifice and faith of the defenders of Belgrade”, Áder said in his address.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic noted that Hunyadi, called Janko Sibinjanin in Serbia, is revered in both countries. “Hunyadi’s dream has come true: Serbs and Hungarians are now fighting together, for shared goals,” Vucic said, adding that “I am glad when I see the Serbian and Hungarian flags flying together; both are ours, and it will always be so.”

Vucic said the two countries’ leaders had “managed to build unprecedentedly good ties on a basis of relatively bad relations over the course of a few years” and voiced his gratitude to Áder, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, and ethnic Hungarian VMSZ party leader István Pásztor, who had “helped build a bridge between Serbs and Hungarians”.

The monument was erected where Hunyadi’s troops had arrived on the River Danube before the famous battle.

Hunyadi, who was also Regent of Hungary between 1446-1453 and father to the later King Matthias, died in Zemun in a plague epidemic that broke out after the Belgrade victory on July 22, 1456.

July 22, 2019

Budapest to erect statue of ‘Mighty Magyar’ Sándor Kocsis

The city of Budapest will erect a statue in tribute to footballer Sándor Kocsis, a prolific scorer of Hungary’s legendary Golden Team in the 1950s, Mayor István Tarlós said on Monday evening, marking the 90th anniversary of his birth.

As Kocsis originally played for Ferencváros,

the statue will be set up near Groupama Aréna, the club’s home, Tarlós said.

Citing his personal memories, the mayor said that Kocsis had been his favourite player.

“The game was everything [for him] and he never complained or faked injury.”

An Olympic champion and world championship silver medalist, Kocsis scored 75 goals in 68 appearances for Hungary, producing the highest all-time average of 1.103 goals/game. He finished the 1954 World Cup as top goalscorer, scoring 11 goals including two hat tricks.

Kocsis played for Ferencváros TC, Budapest Honvéd, Young Fellows Zürich and FC Barcelona as a striker.

During the 1950s, along with Ferenc Puskás, Zoltán Czibor, József Bozsik and Nándor Hidegkuti, he was a member of the Mighty Magyars.

After the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, Kocsis moved to Spain where he became a striker of the FC Barcelona team of the late 1950s.

April 9, 2019

Bust of Hungarian composer Béla Bartók inaugurated in Poland

President János Áder and his counterpart Andrzej Duda inaugurated a bust of Hungarian composer and pianist Béla Bartók in Kielce, in southern Poland, on Saturday as part of events marking the day of Hungarian-Polish friendship.

The bronze bust was erected in an avenue in the centre of Kielce, which already includes more than forty other statues, including those of painters Marc Chagall and Salvador Dalí and composer Igor Stravinsky.

The presidents also lit candles at a memorial dedicated to scouts killed in WW2 and laid a wreath at the memorial plaque of the victims of the Smolensk air disaster of 2010.

Earlier in the day, the presidents attended a mass delivered by Bishop of Kielce Jan Piotrowski and Andras Veres, Bishop of Gyor, in western Hungary, who is president of the Hungarian Catholic Bishops’ Conference.

The annual Polish-Hungarian friendship celebrations date back to March 24, 2006, when the two countries’ presidents at the time, Lech Kaczynski of Poland and László Sólyom of Hungary, inaugurated a memorial in Győr.

Featured image: MTI

March 24, 2019

Photos! – Look at the secret mini statues of Budapest!

Even though it is not impossible to see all of the few hundred statues in Budapest (if you are really dedicated to seeing all of them), it might be tougher than you would have thought. Why? Because of the city’s mini statues that are hidden in certain points of the city. If you ever wish to discover the city’s statues, try it with the unusual mini statues first.

An absolutely remarkable Instagram page, Statues of Budapest, collects the Hungarian capital’s statues on a weekly basis. The page is worth a visit for sure, but we also have to remark that many of these mini statues are made by the sculptor-artist Mihajlo Kolodko, a Ukranian citizen with Hungarian origins, who was born in the Transcarpathian city of Uzhhorod (Ungvár).

Mini statues in Budapest:

Rubik’s cube:

This Kolodko mini-statue is the latest in the Hungarian capital city. The Rubik’s cube is undoubtedly one of the most well-known Hungarian toy inventions that was created in the 1970s. As you can see in the picture, the Rubik’s cube statue is located opposite the Parliament Building, on the Buda embankment, not too far from Batthyány Square, on the side of the stairs.

Animals and lost stuff:

On Széll Kálmán Square, you can find lonely little statues in a weird concept. Does it look like they are separate pieces of things lost by a single person? Or by more people? And why snails and birds? We do not know, but it is sure that they make your day a little bit better if you notice these next time at Széll Kálmán Square. There is a lost umbrella, too!

Ferenc Liszt at Budapest Airport:

This little sculpture is a memorial to Ferenc Liszt, the world-famous Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and music teacher. The Budapest Airport (previously Ferihegy Airport) was named after Ferenc Liszt in 2011, in the year of the 200th anniversary of his birth.

The sculpture is on a pedestal, depicting Liszt (with a strangely long, extended face) waiting on his suitcase. Liszt was a great traveller when he was on concert tours in Europe. In his time, it was much more difficult to travel around. That is the reason why Liszt is sitting on his suitcase in this sculpture.

The rabbit with the checkered ears:

Next to Buda Castle hill funicular‘s upper stop, a small sculpture depicts a famous Hungarian cartoon character: the rabbit with the checkered ears. Rabbit seems to be really busy, watching Széchenyi Chain Bridge with a telescope. This art was also made by the Transcarpathian sculptor, Mihajlo Kolodko.

Holocaust:

The shoes on the bank of the Danube are a famous work by Gyula Pauer, a Hungarian sculptor from 2005. This monument was named the world’s second best public memorial. It is arguably the most tragical monument which symbolises events at the time of the Second World War when Hungarian Jews were ordered to take their shoes off before they were shot dead into the River Danube. A sign commemorates them in Hungarian, Hebrew and English languages.

Featured images: instagram.com/statuesofbudapest/

March 12, 2019

Here is an amazing Hungarian sand sculpture festival in summer 2019! – Photos and Video

#hungary #hungarian #art #sculptor #sculpture #statue #tinnye

A Hungarian man, Ferenc Monostori, is a truly unique artist who makes sand sculptures. Soon, his biggest dream is about to be fulfilled: he is going to organise a sand sculpture festival in Hungary, in the summer of 2019.

Hungarian sculptors seem not only to make statues in front of NFL stadiums but also sand sculptures, like Ferenc Monostori. Building statues out of sand is clearly a spectacular art. Yet, very few people do it in the world, around 4-500 in total. Ferenc Monostori, one of the very few representatives of sand sculpting, has been creating them for 15 years, reported szeretlekmagyarorszag.hu.

The Hungarian sculptor from Tinnye, Hungary, has already made an exhibition at Easter last year. Its topic was the world’s four principal religions.

However, in 2019, the Hungarian artist is preparing for something even bigger: his first-ever sand sculpture festival.

Monostori is and has been participating in sand sculpture festivals all around the world. He said that 80% of his works are made abroad, but now he is extremely excited about his first own festival. Besides the many sand sculptures that he is going to present at the exhibition, there is also going to be some music in the background. Ferenc Monostori has not yet said too much about the event’s concept; he would rather keep it a secret until then.

[button link=”https://dailynewshungary.com/the-11-best-festivals-in-budapest-according-to-cnn/” type=”big” newwindow=”yes”] The 11 best festivals in Budapest according to CNN[/button]

Gallery:

Featured image: www.facebook.com/monostori.eu/photos/

February 26, 2019

Super Bowl LIII: All eyes on the world’s largest Falcon sculpture made by Hungarian artist

At the most watched sporting event in the world, the Super Bowl, the largest free-standing avian sculpture makes its global debut!

More than 100 million people are glued to the screen during the Super Bowl, one of the most watched sporting events in the world, which is broadcast globally in 170 countries. It will be no different this year with Super Bowl LIII, which starts in a few days on the 3rd of February at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium (MBS).

In front of it stands the mighty sculpture of the Atlanta Falcon by internationally renowned artist, Gábor M. Szőke.

Szőke’s work was commissioned in 2017 by Arthur Blank, owner of the Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta United, and the curatorial partner of the MBS Art Program, the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD).

The stainless steel falcon is the largest free-standing avian sculpture in the world with a height of 41.5 ft, a wingspan of 72 ft, and a weight of 73 000 lbs. Szőke envisioned the predator’s prey to be a football. With its wings spread apart, it swoops down on the ball showing the steel falcon in the moment of touchdown. Similarly to previous works of the artist, the scale of the bronze football is also grandiose with a radius of 13 ft and weighing 8000 lbs.

Locals and the international press have described the public work as the heart of Atlanta. To realize its impressive proportions, it took 6 months of designing, 8 months of production, 5 months of installation, all in all 2 years with the involvement of 200 people.

The work was made in Gábor M. Szőke’s unique studio and showroom in Budapest. From there, it traveled for a month and a half on land and sea to Atlanta, where it was assembled and installed by his team comprising structural engineers, sculptors, welders and other expert contractors.

During the design process of the sculpture, Gábor M. Szőke was inspired by the fascinating history of the city of Atlanta, which has burnt to the ground, and risen from its ashes two times.

“Before I start designing, wherever that might be in the world, I like to visit the future location of the sculpture, and absorb the local culture, and familiarize myself with the architectural surroundings and local’s way of thinking. Atlanta is exactly like in the films: the tumultuous history of the southern state and the high-tech skyscrapers of fortune 500 companies can be seen side by side. This trail-blazing city was the center of the civil rights movement. The Walking Dead and Gone with the Wind take place in Atlanta as well.

When I was formulating my sculpture, I first drew inspiration from the Falcon’s motto “Rise Up”, which for me signifies overcoming our own obstacles, and liberating ourselves from them.

The ethereal and graceful feel of the bird is achieved through the plastic arrangement of the several thousand individually welded stainless steel plates, and the precise structural engineering and execution. The glass walls of the MBS reflect the feathers of the bird, just as the reflection of some of Atlanta’s iconic buildings can be seen in the mirror-like eyes of the bird of prey. It’s going to be an amazing experience to see my bird again after two years, and especially at the Super Bowl, when the whole world will be watching. Sculptures such as mine build community, and I am grateful to be a part of this process” said Gábor M. Szőke.

Gábor M. Szőke’s work, the Atlanta Falcon, the largest free-standing avian sculpture in the world, landed in its eminent location among such important Atlantan sights as the Coca-Cola Museum, the CNN Center or the Georgia Aquarium.

Featured image: Gábor Miklós Szőke

January 31, 2019

Demo staged in Budapest against removal of Imre Nagy memorial

The leftist Democratic Coalition (DK) and the Nagy Imre Society held a demonstration against the removal of the martyred 1956 prime minister’s memorial from Martyrs’ Square near Parliament.

The memorial, a bronze statue of Imre Nagy on a bridge, was removed in the early hours of Friday, with Tamás Wachsler, the chief coordinator of reconstruction of the area, citing the square’s rehabilitation as a reason. The memorial will be moved to Jászai Mari Square near Margaret Bridge, he said. A reconstructed post-WWI monument dedicated to the martyrs of the communist Red Terror in 1919 will take its place, he said. (More details HERE)

Demonstrators lit candles at the former site of the statue on Friday afternoon.

Former MP Imre Mécs, who was also sentenced to death after the 1956 uprising and served years in prison, called for the memorial to be restored to its previous place.

DK‘s MEP Csaba Molnár said that

the statue was a memento of the power of the people and the nation that will not tolerate tyranny.

Gergely Orsi, a Budapest councilor of the opposition Socialists, called the memorial’s removal a “shameless act on the government’s part which again brought people on the streets”, and called for the memorial’s restoration to Martyrs’ Square.

December 29, 2018