'For our Grandchildren to See' - was the description of the financial support intentions of the application announced in the framework of the 'Renaissance Year 2009'. Now, one year gone, we are to pass judgement, the applicants are to present the outcome showing that they did everything they could to be there on the museum scene in Hungary. They are in a world where showing extraordinary values is not that evident. To make the technological collections attractive on the visitors' market, they have to learn how to make themselves seen both for Hungarian and foreign visitors.

They need to have good communication skills, need to be able to help one another in a network system and they also have to offer modern shows granting attraction for all generations.

When we review the nearly two dozen innovations, we do not need to feel ashamed.

One of the appealing examples is the Sopron Mining Museum that has always led the way in terms of innovations and ideas. The 'Experience Mine' project, however, exceeds all former ones. Ever since the opening of the mine, more and more visitors come to see the attraction proving that the innovations were worthwhile.

The Oil Industry Museum of Hungary follows a more traditional method of preserving values of the past when it shows two Hungarian-made generators with descriptions provided for both Hungarian and foreign visitors.

While we are at the world of machines, we should mention the real treasury of agricultural machines, the Mezőkövesd Collection run by skill and professionalism. The collection became a more modern and comfortable host via the financial support of the application.

Naturally, it is not our intention to list and evaluate all 22 projects. However, we must evaluate the variegation of items and programmes that characterise the outcome of the application. Among others, the first Water Management Museum in the Great Hungarian Planes, the Hosszúfok Pump Plant built in 1897, was rebuilt. It is now operated by the Bodoky Károly Water Management Museum. The visitors in Szeged can acquaint themselves with the history of the Internet when visiting the unique informatics history collection containing 12.000 items.

The application is not solely interesting due to the colourfulness of collections but also because it showed on open mind to support private collections. This is how the Motorcycle Collection in Bodrogkeresztúr was improved, or another example is the exhibition room of the Herman Ottó Museum with the valuable photography history collection owned by the private collector Zoltán Dömötör.

After flipping through the pages of the booklet, many may ponder on how to move on, if the application is to be continued since the 22 collections shown is merely a fraction of the collections awaiting improvement.

We can promise now, that yes, the application is to be continued since based on the example of the modernization of county houses and literary cafés by way of applications in the past years, we are currently elaborating on a 'Technological Legacy Program' supported by the specialised national museum.

We hope that this extraordinarily exciting and innovative slice of the museum institution system will please the visitors with a lot more positive examples and 'good practices' in the future.

12 June 2009, Budapest

dr. Annamária Vígh
the head of the department
of the Ministry of Education and Culture