*skiagraphia
Pupils of the Sancta Maria Franciscan Girls’ Boarding School in Marosvásárhely, 1909
gelatin silver print (280 x 180 mm) on cardboard (370 x 270 mm)
unidentified photographer, Marosvásárhely / Târgu Mureș, 28.05.1909
Theodor E. Ulieriu-Rostás collection. Accession number: afc.2015.05.
A distinct Franciscan school for girls had existed in the Transylvanian city of Marosvásárhely (Târgu Mureș / Neumarkt am Mieresch) since 1784. In 1892, the school was reorganized as the Sancta Maria Girls’ School with the contribution of the Franciscan Sisters of the Holy Family from Mallersdorf Abbey in Bavaria, a congregation well known for its interest in education, and moved in a brand new neoclassical building.
Given the age of the pupils, the 4th grade undoubtedly refers to secondary school. Each girl and the two teachers are identified on the verso, and their names are interesting on several levels. As a group, they bear testimony to the multinational character of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, even when it came to a mid-size county seat like Marosvásárhely: at a first glance, besides a predictable majority of Hungarian names, one recognizes West-Slavic (Pokorny, Jakubek, Kolonics), German (Olender, Valter, Feichter, Herman, Wagner, Hofman, Ring), Romanian (Muresan, Dajbukat) names – most of them written in Hungarian orthography. On a less serious note, some second names were written down in their diminutive, sometimes hilarious forms (Bertus, Villmácska etc.), while others not: perhaps they draw the writer’s circle of school friends…
Leaving onomastics aside, there are other interesting details to notice in the photo. Some of the girls wear a medallion on a bright-coloured ribbon. My first thought was that it might be a prize for good marks, but the proportions (worn by 21 out of 43) speak against it – perhaps somebody with greater knowledge of Catholic schools may know what this is. An even more puzzling detail: if you look closer at the second pupil in the second row (Ráá Margit), she seems to be wearing typical man’s clothes (coat and tie), although her hairstyle and the entire context leave no doubt about her gender. Might that be some sort of a farce, or is she wearing riding attire at school?
The unsigned photo must have been taken in one of the few studios active in Marosvásárhely at that time (Csonka Géza, Farkas testvérek, Joánovics testvérek, Weinreich Samu, Horváth és Társa), but I haven’t been able to identify the painted background yet. Any suggestions are welcome.
See the details and the verso for the complete transcription of the names. Should you find one of your ancestors in this photo, I would be glad to send you a high-resolution scan - and to know more about her.
Pupils of the Sancta Maria Franciscan Girls’ Boarding School in Marosvásárhely, 1909
gelatin silver print (280 x 180 mm) on cardboard (370 x 270 mm)
unidentified photographer, Marosvásárhely / Târgu Mureș, 28.05.1909
Theodor E. Ulieriu-Rostás collection. Accession number: afc.2015.05.
A distinct Franciscan school for girls had existed in the Transylvanian city of Marosvásárhely (Târgu Mureș / Neumarkt am Mieresch) since 1784. In 1892, the school was reorganized as the Sancta Maria Girls’ School with the contribution of the Franciscan Sisters of the Holy Family from Mallersdorf Abbey in Bavaria, a congregation well known for its interest in education, and moved in a brand new neoclassical building.
Given the age of the pupils, the 4th grade undoubtedly refers to secondary school. Each girl and the two teachers are identified on the verso, and their names are interesting on several levels. As a group, they bear testimony to the multinational character of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, even when it came to a mid-size county seat like Marosvásárhely: at a first glance, besides a predictable majority of Hungarian names, one recognizes West-Slavic (Pokorny, Jakubek, Kolonics), German (Olender, Valter, Feichter, Herman, Wagner, Hofman, Ring), Romanian (Muresan, Dajbukat) names – most of them written in Hungarian orthography. On a less serious note, some second names were written down in their diminutive, sometimes hilarious forms (Bertus, Villmácska etc.), while others not: perhaps they draw the writer’s circle of school friends…
Leaving onomastics aside, there are other interesting details to notice in the photo. Some of the girls wear a medallion on a bright-coloured ribbon. My first thought was that it might be a prize for good marks, but the proportions (worn by 21 out of 43) speak against it – perhaps somebody with greater knowledge of Catholic schools may know what this is. An even more puzzling detail: if you look closer at the second pupil in the second row (Ráá Margit), she seems to be wearing typical man’s clothes (coat and tie), although her hairstyle and the entire context leave no doubt about her gender. Might that be some sort of a farce, or is she wearing riding attire at school?
The unsigned photo must have been taken in one of the few studios active in Marosvásárhely at that time (Csonka Géza, Farkas testvérek, Joánovics testvérek, Weinreich Samu, Horváth és Társa), but I haven’t been able to identify the painted background yet. Any suggestions are welcome.
See the details and the verso for the complete transcription of the names. Should you find one of your ancestors in this photo, I would be glad to send you a high-resolution scan - and to know more about her.