At a press conference held at the Buda Palace, Gergely Fábián, the managing director of the Money Museum, said that one of the basic tasks of the Hungarian National Bank is to develop the financial awareness of the population, which cannot be started early enough. The Money Museum, which is also unique in Europe, serves this purpose: it helps educate young people on four floors, for a total of 2,400 square metres. During the design, they sought to be able to effectively reach the 12-18 years old target group: they used hypermodern digital technology.

Gergely Fábián and Gábor Miklós Szőke held a press conference (Photo: Balázs Both/pestbuda.hu)

The exhibition starts from the basement, where visitors are given a magnetic card with which they have to log in to the computer system. With this card, they can diligently collect coins - the exhibition is interactive throughout, in fact, students come to play, so the success of the institution is certain. The underground level has been arranged as a gold mine, and in addition to the scenery, the map of the precious metal mines of historical Hungary also fits into the concept.

All visitors must log in to the computer system (Photo: Balázs Both/pestbuda.hu)

There is a café and a bookstore on the ground floor, which is relatively spacious and may even be suitable for events. The permanent exhibition runs along the first and second floors, the direction of travel is indicated by a golden strip of light built into the floor, like a golden thread. Visitors also have two hosts, Anna and Péter, who will tell everyone what there is to be known about the exhibition. This is because the collection of coins has a definite order, the basic concept is divided into five nodes, which represent the five functions of money: a measure of value, it is linked to the market, getting credit is possible, it is present all over the world and it provides security.

Anna and Péter lead visitors through the exhibition (Photo: Balázs Both/pestbuda.hu)

It is possible to speculate on the stock exchange here (Photo: Balázs Both/pestbuda.hu)

Learning by playing also extends to the history of the Hungarian National Bank, in the model of the headquarters in Szabadság Square, those who look through the tiny windows can see a hologram video. The door to the presidential office, on the other hand, was modelled in real size, as was its furniture. Of course, domestic means of payment have also been exhibited, some of which may even be nostalgic for older visitors. In addition to the banknotes, there are also many coins, as the Hungarian National Bank has the second largest collection of coins in the country, after the Hungarian National Museum.

Old banknotes were also included in the exhibition (Photo: Balázs Both/pestbuda.hu)

Model of the headquarters of the Hungarian National Bank in Szabadság Square (Photo: Balázs Both/pestbuda.hu)

The money issued must be backed by a gold reserve, which has also been kept by the Hungarian National Bank since its establishment in 1924. At the end of World War II, the workers themselves transported it to Austria from the approaching Soviet troops, risking their lives, from which it returned in full in 1946. The heroes are commemorated by the museum's most powerful exhibition, which is mainly a public sculpture: Gábor Miklós Szőke's Robogás statue. It depicts a locomotive, which, following the artist's well-known style, consists of many smaller units, in this case, about seven thousand pieces, which pattern smaller or larger gold bars.

The work of Gábor Miklós Szőke called Robogás (Photo: Balázs Both/pestbuda.hu)

The back of the 13-metre-long vehicle is located within the walls of the museum, but the front is also not exposed to the vicissitudes of the environment, as the Sándy Gyula Street's covered gateway gives it a home. It was already in place last November but has only just been unveiled in preparation for the 15 March opening. The Money Museum promises to be a sensational success, if only because at the end of the exhibition - in the room behind the Golden Train - visitors can touch a real gold bar.

The column placed deep hides a gold bar (Photo: Balázs Both/pestbuda.hu)