The Holy Crown of Hungary. Kings And Coronations by Tóth Endre, Szelényi Károly / Kossuth Publishing 2000 / Hardcover / English edition of A Magyar Szent Korona / Translated by Brian McLean

Hardcover 2000

ISBN: 9789630941709  /  978-9630941709

ISBN-10: 9630941708

PAGES: 79

PUBLISHER: Kossuth Publishing

LANGUAGE: English

"'We swear that we shall protect Hungary and all its several inhabitants by our laws and freedoms.'
That was one of the oaths sworn by Hun­gary's kings, as they were crowned with a priceless set of coronation regalia, the oldest in Europe.
The centerpiece is the exquisite Holy Crown. Though traditionally associated with St Stephen, Hungary's first king, it is a remarkable amalgam of two different crowns, assembled in the late 12th century. Later it was lost, stolen and damaged several times, as the crooked cross shows.
The all-too-eventful career of the crown, sceptre, orb, sword and mantle ended happily in 1978, when the United States returned them from Fort Knox. Until 1999, they were presented at the Hungarian National Museum. Since 2000, the Holy Crown, the sceptre, the orb and the sword are exhibited at the Parliament. The mantle can be seen at the Hungarian National Museum.
Endre Tóth tells the story of how Hungary's kings were crowned and gives an authoritative account of each piece, based on dec­ades of research. He includes the beautiful liturgical items and vestments used by the Church in the coron­ation service, and a chronology of kings and coronations.
Károly Szelényi's colour photographs are a revelation--an insightful visual essay on these medi­eval masterpieces. They include views taken from angles and with detail that cannot normally be seen with the naked eye."

Hungarian Summary:

A Szent Korona, vele a jogar, az országalma és a palást nemzeti ereklyék: történelmünk régi századainak fennmaradt tanúi. Méltán jelképezik az ezeréves magyar államiságot. A kötet szerzője Tóth Endre régész, koronakutató, a történettudomány kandidátusa, az MTA doktora, több évtizedes kutatásait összegzi ebben a műben, melyet Szelényi Károly magas minőségű, modern technikával készült fényképei illusztrálnak.
A Kossuth kiadó által angol, német és magyar nyelven megjelent gyönyörű fotókkal illusztrált könyve.