The cemetery of Szatmárcseke
The cemetery of Szatmárcseke is one of the most misterious place in Hungary. There are two reason for it. The first is that Ferenc Kölcsey, the author of the national anthem, was buried here. The second reason is the peciular shaped wooden headboard.
The the headboards resemble a boat and a human figure at the same time. Their size is not specified but they reach the height of about an average person. Szatmárcseke is a small village in north-eastern Hungary that used to be surrounded by dense forest and swamps.
Except for Kölcsey and his family, everything buried here has type of wooden headboard. The origin of the custom is unknown. It believed by some scientists to have developed locally. and can be inferred from the fact that it was a hard-to-reach area.
So the death people were transported here by boat. This is symbolized by the shape of the headboard. Others claim that this can be traced back to ancient Ugric customs.
Only one person now knows how to carve a headboard. He is called István Korpás. A 74 year old man. He has been making these since 1969. He learned from his father who learned from his father. There used to be several headboard-makers, but now he is the only one left.
In 2016 he was awarded with the title: "The knight of Hungarian culture". According to him:
"It's looks like a woman wrapped in a black scarf on the side, an old man crouching on the other side and if we turning it horizontally it like a person who lies in a boat.
"I don't think it has anything to do with fishing. Although Cseke was once a fishing village. According to the old elders, there is a legend but there is no written tradition: That the boat was cut in half. People was buried in the one and the other half was erected as a headboard. Whether it's true or not true, I cannot refute or confirm - he said."