Ethnographic Memorial Park to Showcase the Heritage of Transylvanian Nationalities

Plans of the park

The ethnographic memorial and experience park to be built in Csíksomlyó (Șumuleu Ciuc, Romania) will serve the preservation of the Hungarian material, spiritual, and intellectual heritage of Transylvania, the Minister of Culture and Innovation János Csák stressed on Saturday at the presentation of the book entitled Szú, Moly, Rozsda (Furniture beetle, Moth, Rust) at the Szeged Dome Visitor Center (southern Hungary). The book describes the more than ten-year history of the initiative.

For 15 years, János György Kurkó has been the sole creator of the collection that laid the foundations of the park. He collects objects ranging from credenzas to threshing machines, all embodying spiritual heritage. In his presentation of the plans for the park, Kurkó recalled that during a trip to Bukovina, he noticed that the houses in some villages were very similar to those in Szeklerland (present-day Romania), and that one church was a replica of the one in his home village. He then started collecting objects, machines, and buildings. Over the last 11-12 years he has collected more than 70,000 objects.

In the park, covering almost six hectares, visitors will be able to see the village and town of the 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as the activities such as shepherding, and lime and coal burning.

It is a world record that visitors will be able to see 117 different crafts,”

the collector said.

More than 130 buildings will be constructed, he noted, stressing the importance he attaches to showcasing not only the important buildings of the Hungarians living in Transylvania as a whole, but also the heritage of the 13 other nationalities living here.

By rebuilding 18 former properties, the urban unit will display Kossuth Street, the former main street of Csíkszereda (Miercurea Ciuc), completely demolished in the 1980s. It will also house the town hall,  gendarmerie, fire brigade, printing house, school, kindergarten, a photographer’s studio, and replicas of some important merchants’ shops. Based on plans found in Vienna, the Hungarian-Romanian customs house in Gyimesbükk (Ghimeș-Făget) will also be rebuilt, and the park’s reception building will be the replica of the former railway station in Tusnádfürdő (Băile Tușnad).

Via MTI, Featured image: Facebook/Csíksomlyói Néprajzi Emlék- és Élménypark