Prague canceled the tender for the repair of the Lapidary at the Exhibition Grounds

Prague - Prague has postponed the repair and extension of the Lapidarium building at the Exhibition Grounds, where the previous city council intended to place Alfons Mucha's Slav Epic. Today, the councilors decided to cancel the tender for the reconstruction. According to the approved document, the reason is the increase in construction costs, which have made the procurement order no longer relevant. It is not yet clear how the city will proceed regarding the repair of the historic building.

The reconstruction and construction of a new building were approved by the councilors last year, and the city then published a preliminary notice of the tender in August, which serves to inform potential interested parties about the tender. Since then, the city has not issued the actual tender and will not do so now. The estimated value of the contract, according to the announcement, was to be 580 million crowns.

"The reconstruction of the Lapidarium will be subject to further negotiations," it is stated in the approved document. According to the city leadership, the procurement order would have to be significantly revised due to the rising costs. Another problem is the fact that the building is connected to a facility used by the Mořský svět company, which is to be demolished according to the current project. However, the notice period for the lease will not end until the end of June 2021.

The Lapidarium is located behind the main entrance to the Exhibition Grounds. It is one of the original pavilions from the Jubilee Exhibition of 1891, which is now in a dilapidated state. The first exhibits were installed in it seven years after the Jubilee Exhibition, and the collection was first presented to the public in 1905. Due to its emergency state, the building was closed from 1967 to 1993.

The Lapidarium building is another in a series of abandoned plans for the placement of Mucha's famous cycle. Previously, the city planned to build a separate building, either in Letná behind the Ministry of the Interior or in Těšnov. Recently, there has also been discussion about a chateau in Zbraslav, and Prague 2 has suggested displaying it in the Vyšehrad railway station building. The Culture Committee recommended to councilors to place the cycle in the chateau in Moravský Krumlov, where the paintings were exhibited from the 1950s until 2011. They were to wait there until the city prepares a suitable building.