The preservationist bought a chapel to save it from destruction

Polom (Chrudimsko) - To save the dilapidated church of St. Kunhuta in the settlement of Polom near Trhová Kamenice from complete ruin, František Václavík from Pardubice purchased it along with the cemetery from the Catholic Church himself. He successfully obtained funds for basic repairs and, together with a group of volunteers and several craftsmen, carried out the necessary work to secure the picturesque building, which stands almost alone among the woods, against the elements before winter. In the future, music, theatrical performances, or lectures about monuments are expected to resonate in the church, said the owner of the sacred building to ČTK.
    "I acquired the church in January for a symbolic price; the church didn’t know what to do with it. I had to hurry because in February applications for grants for the renovation of monuments were already being submitted. In the future, I want to transfer everything to a civic association, which has already been established," said Václavík, who works at the Pardubice branch of the National Heritage Institute, but has been visiting friends in the area of Polom for two decades.
    It turned out that the rapid progress was meaningful. Václavík managed to obtain one million crowns from the emergency fund of the Ministry of Culture, later also about 130,000 crowns from the regional office, and the municipality of Trhová Kamenice contributed 35,000 crowns. "Now we are starting to receive smaller donations from ordinary people as well as from the countryside," Václavík said.
    With the help of friends and volunteers, the church has been cleaned of debris and rubble during several workdays, and the destroyed roof above the nave was dismantled. Masons have newly constructed arches, the crown of the walls, the cornice, and the vault at the presbytery; carpenters are preparing to cover the roof at least with tar paper by utilizing parts of the original rafters. "Before winter, we still need to glaze the windows, and we want to attempt to temporarily cover the sacristy and the entrance," Václavík said. In the following year, the association plans to acquire new roofing and gradually also to repair the completely destroyed interior, the enclosing wall of the cemetery, and the belfry.
    Under the provisional roof, the association plans to hold events for the public. "We want to create a space where music, theatrical, or artistic projects can take place in a protected environment. There should also be craft workshops focused on heritage," Václavík stated.
    The church of St. Kunhuta was built at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries; the rafters and roof date from 1833, and the stone enclosing wall from 1896. At that time, Jan Schmoranz, the son of the well-known architect František Schmoran, was carrying out repairs on the church and grounds. Considering the harsh weather, he had the original wooden windows replaced with new ones made of a special alloy and vaulted the ceilings with brick arches into the beams. "If the original wooden windows were still there, the church would have long since collapsed. That industrial conversion with an emphasis on functionality and durability actually saved it," Václavík said.