During the renovation of the Tugendhat villa, the builders found the original floor

Brno - During the renovation of the functionalist Tugendhat villa, which is the only Czech modern art building listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, builders unexpectedly discovered the original floor. The so-called Sorel cement was found beneath the PVC in the third floor and in the main living area. However, there it was only under the travertine wall cladding, as the original material was removed by workers during renovations in the 1980s and replaced with regular concrete. An expert international commission will discuss the Sorel cement. It will decide whether to reuse it, Deputy Mayor Ladislav Macek (ČSSD) told reporters today.
    According to Macek, experts are currently examining fragments of the material in the laboratory. They are trying to determine its age and other properties. It is not known whether the material, patented in 1927, was used during the completion of the villa in 1930 or only during the post-war restoration in 1945. At that time, the original floor made of natural linoleum was replaced with red xylolite.
    An international commission of experts regularly discusses the heritage restoration of the villa. According to Macek, the next meeting is scheduled for June, where experts are expected to address the flooring. People associated with the villa are also investigating the availability of materials. "Locations with the same sand composition as was used during construction have been identified in Bratčice," Macek said.
    Rescue archaeological research was conducted by experts during the current renovation in the garden, where vegetation was removed. They were looking for remnants of the original window glazing. Dozens of fragments were indeed found, from which new window panes will now be produced. According to Macek, it is already clear that panes measuring two by three meters and six millimeters thick cannot be produced by any company in the Czech Republic. They will therefore have to be imported, most likely from the Netherlands.
    The heritage restoration of the Tugendhat villa began in February and will cost 146 million crowns.