The large-scale permanent exhibition "At the Crossroads" of the Szekler Museum of Ciuc was opened in 2018, an exhibition that presents the history of the city of Miercurea-Ciuc from its beginnings to 1989, the last year of communism. Its creation was preceded by years of archival and field research to collect objects. On this occasion, the late engineer Rákosi Zoltán from Miercurea-Ciuc and his family offered an important donation to the museum, which also included a figure skating suit, complete with skates. As the object of February, the month of winter sports, we are exhibiting this skating set. The valuable donation also includes those contemporary sports newspapers (original copies) that report events, competitions and awards, both in Romanian and Hungarian, evoking the atmosphere of the era and the appreciation and value of this artistic sport. Among such publications are Sportul popular (1958), Informația Bucureștiului (1960), Előre (1960), Ifjúmunkás (1968), Hargita (1971), etc., which were meticulously compiled and preserved by the family for posterity, in chronological order. In addition, original posters, diplomas, awards and organizational documents of the figure skating department have enriched the museum's assets, for which we would like to express our gratitude.
The former owner of the figure skating dress, Mrs. Rákosi Zoltánné, born Seiwarth Éva, was a prominent figure in ice sports in Miercurea-Ciuc, becoming in the 1950s and 1960s, thanks to her talent, known as a successful figure skater. Together with her sister, Imola, she participated in numerous national figure skating championships for youth and adults, with significant results. In the second half of the 1960s she founded the figure skating professional circle at the Miercurea-Ciuc Sports Club, pursuing a fruitful career both as an organizer and as a coach. The Seiwarth family is not only known for sports in Miercurea Ciuc, because Eva's father, Seiwarth László, was a former famous photographer of the city. He captured his daughters' figure skating successes in a series of photographs and arranged them in beautiful, well-bound albums that can even be considered a photographic chronicle.
The history of figure skating fashion dates back to the late 19th century, when international figure skating competitions were held in Hamburg, St. Petersburg and London. In addition to the skaters' technical skills, choreography and music, the appearance and spectacular costumes played an extremely important role. The "competition" outfits worn at the beginning of the century were almost identical to street outfits, but were matched with skates. Naturally, women wore ankle-length skirts and men wore suits. In the 1930s, Norwegian Olympic and world champion Sonia Heine reformed the fashion for figure skating clothing, starting to compete in costumes with much shorter skirts than was customary up to that time. Several competitors followed her example. Later, in the fashion of the 1950s, clothes began to become more spectacular, with more intense colours and brighter materials, complemented by decorative elements such as sequins.
The skating dress follows the fashion of the 1950s and 1960s: red, made of soft wool, long sleeves, small round collar, with a short, thin, pleated skirt, with sequins that give it a festive character. It is in very good condition, and the size corresponds to a 38 of today's women's clothing.
The leather skates are white (women usually wore white, while men wore black) and are in good condition. They have a sophisticated and stylish design: they are tied with laces, up to the ankle, and from there they continue with clips up to the calves. The blade is made of steel, has a slightly curved profile and is serrated at the tip, which gives stability when performing jumps and tricks, while the elongated blade over the heel of the shoe helps in changing direction.
Magyari Éva historian, conservator
