Took the bike out today, riding north to the end of Andrassy, onto Heroes' Square, which is rife with political meaning for these folks.
The horsemen represent the seven tribes that founded this odd land. When the Soviets took over in 1949, they covered all this stuff up with red fabric in the name of "internationalism" and erected a statue of Marx in their place.
Not sure if this is work-safe. Horses are whipped.
Here's how Heroes' Square looked, from behind, in 1896.
St. Stephen is at left. The guy at right, St. Laszlo I, seems mildly surprised to be considered a hero. Take a bow, man. You rescued a maiden from a Cumanian warrior!
On a whim, I popped in to the Museum of Fine Arts, which has a fine collection of classical antiquities, and 17th- and 18th-century Flemish paintings.
I showed up just in time for a free tour, in English, of Dutch, Spanish and Italian Baroque paintings. The "group" consisted of me and an Israeli girl, and our guide was Sharyn, from Madison, Wis. I felt fortunate. We covered about eight pieces in 90 minutes, which allowed us to discuss the works in depth. Nice job, Share-Bear!
The curtain rises in 90 minutes for Donizetti's "Don Pasquale" at the Hungarian State Opera, so I must get dressed. And a good day to you.
Haw! "Share-Bear" is hilarious! What was the name of our favorite Flemish painter? Vander Hooten or something like that ... Did you avoid museum fatigue?
ReplyDeleteMuseum fatigue was creeping up on me. When Sharyn said, "And now we'll look at our last painting," I felt a little energized. You won't believe this, but there is an entire small room devoted to Melchior d’Hondecoeter and his dad, who also painted fighting birds.
ReplyDeleteAh yes, Melchior d'Hondecoeter was the name. An entire room devoted to his work must have been incredible. Was his dad as good?
ReplyDeleteIt was a small room, almost an afterthought between galleries. Between junior and senior, the works were almost indistinguishable. Jr. was a little more sly, giving his birds almost human expressions.
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