The 200-year vicissitudes of the Hungarian Natural History Museum

MúzeumCafé 27.

While almost the entire museum structure in Hungary is facing transformation MúzeumCafé reports about a public collection which has got used to change, since practically for no time at all throughout its 200-year history has it had a permanent or seemingly permanent home. The core of the collection in the Hungarian Natural History Museum comes from the Széchényi acquisitions that formed the original basis of the National Széchényi Library and the Hungarian National Museum. Yet the Natural History Museum moved into its premises only towards the end of the last century, having had to share space for two hundred years. In 1802 Ferenc Széchényi donated to the Hungarian nation several thousand items from his library and collection of documents and prints, and a year later his wife, Julianna Festetics, presented her collection of minerals to the nation. Both donations formed part of the then established Hungarian National Museum. The foundation of the Hungarian Natural History Museum, which has existed under different names and in different locations, also dates from that time. More than 60 museologists who are also researchers of their field are employed by the museum. They are expected to have two academic writings published on average every year and most of them come out in English. Both Hungarian and foreign guest researchers work regularly in its various departments. Thanks to EU projects, 40-50 specialists come to the museum from across Europe every year and the collection is also visited by experts from other parts of the world. Many of the staff teach at universities and the museum itself operates as the Saint Stephen University’s Department of Zoology. It is here that students gain practical experience and conduct research for their theses and PhD dissertations.