Ellipsum Adventure and Beach Bath

In December 1932, Hegyaljai Kiss Géza’s article about the white snake of Tapolca appeared in the columns of the Reggeli Hírlap.

"This water used to be very effective against illnesses. My parents also went there, they visited the bath’s spring, and there the white snake swam... The old folks used to say: ‘The water was truly beneficial when the white snake lived in it. But then the machines drove it away’." - as stated in the article. 

The author began further research and sought out the region’s greatest natural scientist, József Buday, the retired natural history teacher of the Miskolc Reformed Gymnasium, to ask whether a white snake could exist in Miskolctapolca. Buday commented: „Science knows nothing of a white snake, its existence is unlikely, as sharp-eyed scientists would have noticed it by now if it existed. Its existence is improbable also because the white colour would make it stand out from its environment, which would be an unnatural phenomenon and would lead to the animal’s inevitable extinction. I believe the white snake is a creation of folklore, not reality“.

In the early 20th century, the legend of the snake symbolised the healing power of the water – but today, it can no longer be found in Miskolctapolca.