Erdélyi képek

In the summer of 1676 a striking figure dominates the landscape of Csíkszereda: Petki Farkas, a seasoned royal bailiff and local magnate whose estate at Rákos becomes a bustling hub of hospitality. Eighty pages of servants, cooks, riders and drabant soldiers move through his halls, yet every visitor is welcomed as if the house were built especially for them. Market travelers who pause for a chat often linger long after the fair has ended, drawn by his warm smile and generous spirit.

Petki’s pride swells not only from his open‑door policy but also from his patronage of learning and faith. Each year he travels to the great Enyed collegium, funds the brightest students for university, and finances the reconstruction of a burned‑out parish church, appointing a priest of his own choosing. His benevolence reaches even the poorest, whom he settles on gifted plots with livestock and a modest cottage.

Yet beneath the lavish hospitality lies a vivid family legend. The Petki coat of arms bears a mysterious, unnamed beast—part horned, part serpentine—clutched by a massive trident, a symbol of an ancestor who supposedly felled a pre‑flood leviathan. In the manor’s inner courtyard stands an enormous iron statue of that forebear, one arm hoisting a towering shield, the other gripping a fearsome pike, inviting all who meet it to marvel at the enigmatic heritage of the enigmatic lord.