Will be the new museum of natural sciences really built in or moved to Debrecen?
The question regarding the fate of the Natural History Science Museum has arisen as a result of the government wanting to re-purpose the metropolitan buildings used by the Hungarian Natural History Museum (MTTM): last year, it was said that the plant collection is supposed to move out from the newly renovated art nouveau building (the former Széchenyi High School) of the Tündérpalota at the Könyves Kálmán boulevard, and the neighboring National University of Public Services who wants to take over the building part of the Ludovika square as well.
In compensation for the eviction, the ministry promised that somewhere in Budapest, they will have the chance to build a totally brand new museum building with a total of 50,000 square meters, for the exceptionally large institution which keeps a diverse collection. However, it seems the location is under question.
According to Mr. László Palkovics, Minister of Innovation and Technology, the government had decided about the establishment of the new museum of natural sciences and it seems it will be built in a great university town in the countryside – he said in his interview at ATV.
Index.hu then reported that the big university town is Debrecen. According to their information, the board and colleagues of the Hungarian Natural History Museum were informed about the move in a personal meeting recently. But most of them do not wish to make the move to the countryside. Mr. Zoltán Korsós, Director General of the Museum, responded to the Index’s question: actually, there are negotiations on this issue at the moment, but no final decision has yet been taken concerning the relocation.
The history of the Hungarian Natural History Museum in a nutshell: The Hungarian Natural History Museum began in 1802 when the natural sciences collection of the Hungarian National Museum was established with the offer of Ferenc Széchényi count’s wife: with the help of the mineral collection of count Julianna Festetics, the MTTM grew quickly, over period of 200 years. In 1810, the Natural History and Artistic Production (Camera Naturae et Artis Productorum) was founded, the first collection of paleontologists arrived in 1811 and bought the first zoological collection in the same year. In 1818, József Nádor bought the botanical collection of Pál Kitaibel for the store, and the collections have continued to grow at a relatively rapid rate through donations and purchases subsequently.
Photo credit: MTI | László Róka
