The castle in Troja will have its roof repaired, the covering is at the end of its life

photo: GHMP

Prague - The palace in Prague's Troja will undergo roof repairs. The reason is its condition, as the roof covering is nearing the end of its lifespan. Gutters will also be replaced and the capitals of the pilasters on the facade will be repaired. The city will allocate 24 million crowns for the repairs this year. Additional funds will be provided for the restoration of the stone base and the entrance portal. This stems from the city's budget for this year. The baroque palace dates back to the 17th century and is managed by the Gallery of the Capital City.

"In places where the covering is accessible from dormers or windows, it has been found that about 30 to 40 percent of the shingles are loose. Mortar also shows signs of weathering and instability. The existing covering has reached the limit of its lifespan due to the condition of the connecting mortar and needs to be replaced with a new one," the document states.

The roof is made of small-format jirčanský shingles. In addition to the roofing, battens and counter-battens, which are placed from the ridge of the roof to the gutters, will be replaced. However, some metal products, such as shed dormers or chimney flashing, will be retained. "Other elements, such as gutters or valleys, will need to be replaced with new ones," the document notes.

Alongside the roof replacement, the municipality will also have the damaged sculpturally decorated Ionic capitals of the pilasters and columns on the outer facade of the main building of the palace reconstructed and restored. The capitals are in a state of emergency and had to be covered with nets due to falling pieces some time ago.

During the preparatory work, the roof structure was geodetically measured, and project documentation was prepared along with a control budget. A survey for the restoration of the pilaster capitals is complete, as well as a control budget.

The city management plans to invest an additional 3.5 million crowns into the complex for the restoration of the base and the stone entrance portal from the northern courtyard. Sandstone blocks here are deteriorating, so the stones will be repaired, conserved, and the most damaged on the southern side of the facade will be replaced. Part of the work will be the repair of the northern entrance portal of the main building. Experts will clean it and remove inappropriate secondary additions and aging grouting. The joints will be newly re-filled and color-matched.

The baroque Troja palace was commissioned by Count Václav Vojtěch of Šternberk in 1678. It was built according to the project of Italian architect Jean Baptista Mathey and was completed, according to the palace's website, in 1689.