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On February 13, 2021, the team of Budapest University of Technology and Economics - Department of History of Architecture and Monument Preservation organised a pilot site visit in Százhalombatta (former Roman settlement of Matrica). Lecturers and students of the university both fulfilled a tour on the site and met experts of architecture and archaeology.
The Hungarian Pilot Site of the Living Danube Limes project in Százhalombatta, the territory and environment of the castrum and vicus of Roman Matrica, will be the subject of the Design Course of the department. During the course, the students will fulfil a related research on values of Roman ruins and their cultural legacy, provide ideas for the use and development of the area and also visualise their thought on retreatment of the camp in a small architectural design project.
This course is organised in coherence with the principles of the Living Danube Limes project, therefore according to our aim, the students have an opportunity to gain insight into how an international project works. During our pilot site visit, Dr. Zoltán M. Oláh, the chief architect of Százhalombatta gave an introduction to the possible urban development fields of the city and the area of the castrum. The archaeologist Dr. Magdolna Vicze, head of Banner János Foundation of Archaeology, which acts as an Associated Strategic Partner of the project, gave a lecture both on the history of the auxiliary camp and results of the archaeological surveys in Százhalombatta/Matrica, and shared several methodological details in the field of archaeology and museology with the students of architecture.
The aim of the design course is to provide an opportunity for the students to develop their own ideas and approach, how to design in an environment with historical monuments with the supervision of university professors and guest lecturers. Therefore, during the semester, thematic lectures will give an introduction to the field of heritage protection, the development of world heritage sites and monument preservation and representation. The supervisor of the design course, Dr. Balázs Halmos, shared his expectations: “At the end of the semester, fresh ideas will provide a possible input for the development of the site with respect for its historical past. The pilot site visit must be the very first and essential step toward this long route - via the limes.”
Photo by: Gergő Máté Kovács
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