Karlštejn Castle – Emergency securing of supporting pillars and curtain walls adjacent to the Burgrave’s palace

Address: | SH Karlštejn Budňany, parc. č. 431 |
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Description of work: | Specialised construction and restoration works |
Investor: | National Heritage Institute |
Contractor: | GEMA ART GROUP a.s. |
Implementation: | 2015 – 2016 |
The National Heritage Institute carries out regular conservation and preservation works at the State castle Karlštejn. This national monument has a special position among Czech castles. Karlštejn was founded in 1348 as Gothic castle in 1348 by the King of Bohemia and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV. Royal treasures such as collections of holy relics and the Imperial crown jewels were placed in Karlštejn for safekeeping. GEMA ART GROUP a.s. is regularly taking part in implementation of projects at Karlštejn.
Currently, it is carrying out conservation and construction works in securing the supporting pillars of the curtain walls adjacent to the Burgrave’s palace. The works are carried out based on the project by Ing. Vít Mlázovský and supervised by the National Heritage Institute. The historical masonry is exposed to a number of elements causing gradual degradation of its integrity. This includes, in particular, degradation caused by self-seeded trees and weather effects. In consideration of the above-mentioned causes of degradation, the works begin with removal of weed plants from the slopes under the curtain walls, general landscape modifications and construction of a scaffold allowing works on the outer walls. The follow-up works involve removal of self-seeded plants, cleaning the cracks, conservation of the masonry, injections, core drilling and anchoring of the walls, supplementation of the stone, mixed and snecked masonry. The final stage will involve refilling joints and applying treatment against weather effects.