The naturalist, ethnographer, historian and politician Ottó Herman built the house, designed by his wife Kamilla Borosnyay, as a summer residence between 1898 and 1903. He dubbed it Peleház and spent each summer there for decades, completing much of his most important work there.
In 1951, Peleház became the property of the Ottó Herman Museum, and the first exhibition in the house opened in 1964, a year after its renovation.
The house's most recent renovation was carried out by the museum - which is supported by the local council - within the framework of the Alfa Programme. The renovation started in the spring of 2006 and involved all of the house's interior and many parts of the exterior. The exhibition space was redone, a new heating system was installed and the building was made accessible to the physically disabled.
The new exhibition in Peleház shows the broad range of Herman's work in the natural sciences, history and politics. In the first room visitors see - Herman's work room - some personal effects, letters and family pictures are on display. In the second room, visitors are shown his scientific work, including studies of birds and spiders. Other areas of the museum show Herman's activities as an archaeologist, his research of the caves in the surrounding Bükk region and his work as an ethnographer. The exhibition includes an interactive section with two touch-sensitive monitors, and visitors can use headphones for a guided tour in several languages.
Source: Múlt-kor / Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
