Izabela Danterová
Rye straw has always been considered an important raw material in the agricultural environment of Slovakia. It had vast use in southwest Slovakia, around the towns of Galanta, Senec and Šaľa. Slovaks from the lowlands who settled in Galanta and its surrounding municipalities (Tótkomlós, Békéscsaba, Nagybánhegyes and Csanádalberti in Hungary) in 1947 brought their own characteristic utilitarian objects from straw. Rye straw was mostly used for basket weaving. In previous years there was at least one or even several men in every of these municipalities who weaved baskets, storage vessels and beehives during winter. The most widespread were baskets for rising bread dough. The most characteristic vessel of Slovaks from the lowlands was a flat, shallow basket with an average diameter of up to 70 cm for drying pasta and a basket with cover to store bread. Straw storage vessels largely spread in this region because the focus of the economy was growing grains and vegetables. They were used for storing grains, maize, leguminous plants, flour, fruits, vegetables, eggs etc. Amphora-shaped vessels come from the lowlands. Basket production started to cease in the middle of the 20th century. In the last three decades, nobody was interested in producing them in this part of Slovakia.