Tour on the land of potters

Itinerary

• Starting from the Magyarszombatfa bus stop, in front of the local government building (Fő út 66.), we head west along Fő Street, aiming for the north-south section of the Z (and the intertwined K) trails. We follow this path for a long time even after leaving the village, through a forested environment.
• From the Z trail, we switch northeastwards to the K trail via the K+ trail.
• Where the PT trail joins, we turn right towards the church in Velemér.
• Returning to the K trail, we follow it through Gödörháza to the Magyarszombatfa vineyard hill.
• Here, we turn northeast on the PT trail and walk into Magyarszombatfa, returning to our starting point on Fő Street.

Detailed description of the route

Visit to the potter’s village, Magyarszombatfa

We start our tour from the emblematic potter’s village in Őrség, at the local government building. From here, we head to the village's oldest building, the charming thatched Potter’s House. Built in 1790, this horizontally beam-walled, porch-style peasant house features furnishings typical of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It once belonged to the illustrious Cseke family, known for their pottery traditions, and has functioned since 1975 as a memorial folk house and nowadays as an event and exhibition space. Its living room, kitchen, and workshop, equipped with old furnishings and original pottery products, introduce visitors to the secrets of pottery. A special attraction is an archaic, wood-fired haystack kiln in the farm building, occasionally operated for demonstrations, where finished products were traditionally fired.

The first written mention of Magyarszombatfa pottery dates back to 1366, with the durable raw material for the pottery being locally sourced, good quality clay. The village's clayey soil, which had low agricultural productivity, was compensated for through forestry, animal husbandry, and trade or sale of produced ceramics. Potters crafted pots, water jugs (bugyigák), and vessels during winter, loading them onto carts before spring agricultural work started and sold them door-to-door. They reached areas such as Zala and Somogy, trading attractive Őrség earthenware for grain and other household items. Between the two world wars, a hundred potters worked in Magyarszombatfa, today only twelve work in six workshops. Locally, potters were known as gerencsérs. Interestingly, they always worked the wheel counterclockwise, and traditional colors were brown, yellow, and green. The style and shapes of the vessels show similarities with Mediterranean areas. Magyarszombatfa pottery was registered as part of the National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2014. Since 2002, an International Potter Meeting and Market has been held annually in Magyarszombatfa.

While wandering in the village, one can visit several pottery workshops and it is also worthwhile to see the Czugh János memorial room private collection located on the route. The famous potter with the title “Master of Folk Art,” also known as “János the Potter,” has his works exhibited by his daughter, Mária Czugh, and her husband.

The forest tells tales: wandering among the natural treasures of the border zone

Walking along the village's main street on the concrete road, we continue to the joining point of the K and Z trails. We follow the K and Z trails southward toward the state border, then in the forest, we say goodbye to the K trail at the concrete geographic landmark and continue along the Z trail on the former track. We cross the border crossing point on the road from Magyarszombatfa to Pártosfalva (Prosenjakovci). There is a lively connection between the neighboring settlements, with Pártosfalva’s Hungarian and Slovenian schools attracting families from the motherland.

In the beech woods along the trail, we might spot the typically slate-gray blue pigeon with shiny blue spotted feathers on its rump. Interestingly, during breeding, it often uses abandoned nests of the black woodpecker also nesting in the area. Among butterfly species that prefer the habitat along the border strip, on their host plants (beech, oak, hornbeam, linden, blackthorn) or on the litter, we may notice the distinctive “eyed” decoration of the dark yellow ochre T-marked peacock butterfly. Near forest clearings and edges, we can meet the much more colorful small hairstreak butterfly, named for the violet or blue interference coloration of the males. An interesting bird of the canopy is the white-collared sparrowhawk, with a white collar on its neck, and black stripes on its wings and forehead, which preys on spiders and insects. Among plants, we may spot several decimeter-tall, early spring blooming, fragrant, lilac-pink-flowered shrubs known as the wolf’s bane in several places. Scarlet, attractive but poisonous fruits for humans are eaten by birds which disperse the seeds. The spectacularly blooming, sometimes 30-40 cm tall, protected lance-shaped white-flowered gladiolus in May may also interest visitors.

If uncertain about following the Z trail along the border strip, just look for the boundary stones! At boundary stone No. 345, we switch from the Z to the K+ trail heading northeast. In the shadow of Hideg Hill, reaching the K trail, we continue left and head through Kövecses Hill toward Velemér.

Biblical comic strips in the Velemér church

Arriving in Velemér, the jewel box of Inner Őrség, our first stop is the medieval origin Holy Trinity Church, closely linked to the village’s name. Velemér’s old name was “Holy Trinity” or Szentháromságfalva. The forest clearing church’s history is interwoven with the Széchy family. King Louis the Great’s devoted supporter, Miklós Széchy, Croatian-Dalmatian ban, received the Velemér valley with its ten villages in 1365 as a donation belonging to the castle of Lendva. The church’s exact construction date is uncertain but may be as early as this period based on its early Gothic architectural features. Its wonderful frescoes were painted by the famous 14th-century church painter János Aquila in 1377-78.

The sanctuary, oriented eastward, once conveyed biblical messages to worshippers inside and outside through frescoes. On the western wall beside the entrance, a small Saint Christopher carrying Baby Jesus on his shoulder greeted visitors; now only a fragment of his halo remains. The interior murals have survived well despite the ravages of history. Legend has it that the fresco figures (except the soldiers of hell in eternal darkness) were literally illuminated by the sun on the saint's or scene's feast day, revealing their meaning. For example, on Trinity Sunday, the rising sun through the eastern sanctuary window illuminates the ancient triple circle Trinity symbol on the triumphal arch. At the winter solstice dawn, sunlight first bathes Baby Jesus seated in the Madonna’s lap through the round southeastern window. Hence, this charming building is called the Church of Light.

Among the depictions, a standout is the Adoration of the Magi group on the northern wall and the figures of our heroic knight king Saint Ladislaus and the benevolent Saint Nicholas. Inside the sanctuary, the symbols of the four evangelists and the self-portrait of the artist captured during prayer, embedded in the contemporaneous scholastic symbolic system, can be found. On the southern wall, a row of saints connected to the Árpád dynasty, matching the four main prayer hours, can be seen from Saint Elizabeth to likely Saint Margaret via King Saint Stephen, though only fragments remain. Above the triumphal arch in a green mandorla (almond-shaped radiance), the Last Judgment is depicted with Christ in the center, the saved on his right, and the damned on his left. Below the scene are the Golgotha and the classic Mettercia scene (Saint Anne holding her daughter, the Virgin Mary, who holds Baby Jesus). Saint George and Saint Martin on horseback guard the western wall. Based on the religious education and faith of the contemporary viewer, this was read as a “peasant bible” comic strip.

Preserving values in Velemér

After absorbing the unique sacred, art historical, and monument protection message, we proceed to discover Velemér’s other treasures. The cemetery next to the church holds several old “sökfás” (carved wooden headstone) gravestones. “Sökfa” or “sőgfa” is the local dialectal term for cap-shaped wood, usually made by Calvinists from oak or beech, and for the poorer ones from pine. The epitaphs contained only the deceased’s name and age, with decorations limited to a carved star or some runic signs. Men’s headstones were pointed, women’s rounded. This form was adopted by the first stone graves too. Under the trees near the cemetery, one can read the confessions of the Őrség villages.

On the hillside part of the village, following the K trail mostly along the PT marked Yellow Lily nature trail, we explore an interesting path named after the protected, highly decorative, and fragrant herbaceous plant locally found. Its first description was thanks to Carolus Clusius, a German-Flemish botanist who visited Őrség in the 16th century. The Yellow Lily and its many cultivated varieties are also credited with bringing this flower to Holland.

Passing through the village houses, we examine old farm buildings, chimney shapes, meadow orchards, barn buildings, or even corn cribs. Here we can see Őrség’s only two-story castellum (storehouse) with an attached barn. At the Cserepmadar accommodation, we also visit the privately owned “Sindüm Museum,” which holds many curiosities. Here, we learn about roof tiles decorated with incised ancient symbols called “sindü,” made by potters. Another part of the exhibition consists of earthenware made by Őrség potters. Roaming the village, a local history exhibition, the studio of painter István Balogh, as well as collections of Éva Dávid’s habán ceramics and Renaissance majolica, lure travelers to stop. Carved doors and looted porch stable barns still found on some farms are also among Velemér’s charms.

In village courtyards, one encounters native orchards typical throughout Őrség. Among apples, the batul, Easter rosemary, strudel, biscuit, and dirty varieties are typical. Among pears, variety like rozsérő, zabérő, and sózó occur in several places. The Szentgyörgyvölgyi stream flowing through the Velemér valley gently guards the colorful wildlife of the creekside with its resinous alder trees. The striking representatives of wet meadow inhabitants include the Siberian iris, slender and elegant, the already mentioned yellow lily, and the blue-flowered spring pheasant’s eye blooming even in autumn. Watching insects, one can notice not only the chasing ants but the characteristic praying mantis popularly known as the sleepy elf. Despite its name, this mantis family insect is not related to grasshoppers. In hunting, it captures prey with strong, spiny, blade-like closing forelegs. It mainly feeds on insects but occasionally preys on small lizards or young birds. After leaf break, the low-flying, fast-singing field cricket bird is common in creekside shrubs.

Where the street is still ucca

Continuing from Velemér on the K trail towards Gödörháza, if visiting in mid-spring, one can admire a meadow with hare’s-tail grass beauty. Soon after, we reach a village area named after clay extraction, once also proud of excellent potters. This settlement, which has seen better days, now administratively belongs to Magyarszombatfa. The short road sections opening onto the main street, still called "ucca" by locals (such as Kispetik ucca and Cinkik ucca), leading to family homes, give the settlement a unique charm. It is also worth detouring to the cheese factory.

Gödörháza's main attraction is undoubtedly the skirted, shingle-covered Reformed bell tower built in 1790. A reference to its carpenter builder, a noblewoman’s carpenter, can be found engraved on one of the beams. The four-pillared structure stands on footings; these are mortised into the base wreath supporting the skirt corbels. The tower columns are crowned by a wreath at the top, supporting the rafters of the tower roof. Under the roof hangs the bell, rung only on exceptional events or major life turning points.

From the bell tower, we continue on the K trail, then sharply turn north on the Magyarszombatfa vineyard hill, again leaving the Yellow Lily nature trail by turning onto the PT trail, heading to Magyarszombatfa. The junction is aided by the “Inner Őrség adventures” hiking trail signpost. Near Ginti Pension, we reach Magyarszombatfa, where we turn left and return to our starting point on Fő Street at the local government building.