The Jezeří Castle in the Most region has received a grant for restoration and will close the theater hall

Horní Jiřetín - The Jezeří Castle above the brown coal mine in Mostecko has received a grant for the next phase of restoration. Due to renovations, the theatre hall will be closed for at least two years. The last concert in it will be on Sunday, October 12. This was stated today by the castle's curator, Hana Krejčová. The grant comes from the Operational Program for Just Transformation.

The two-story theatre hall of Jezeří Castle was restored by heritage conservationists during the coronavirus pandemic and was opened in September 2022. Now it's time for the spaces next to the hall, where facilities for musicians and other performers will be created. The selected company will build new restrooms and related infrastructure; the reconstruction will also affect the hallways on two floors. "The total costs are in the range of tens of millions of crowns,” said the curator.

The hall will be closed due to renovations, and tours of the castle will be limited. "We will have to adapt everything to the work, but the castle will definitely not be completely closed," said the castle's curator, who is also gradually replacing the windows. "The castle has a roof, trusses, and ensured stability, so now it’s time for the next part of the inner spaces. The façade will be done last," Krejčová said.

The repair of the theatre hall cost 30 million crowns. It mainly involved the replacement of the beams of the elliptical dome, damaged parts of the truss, and wooden formwork. The builders replaced the missing parts of the balcony, and experts restored damaged window fillings and blinds. The hall is unique in the Czech Republic as it combines two styles; the lower part is Baroque and the second part is from the 19th century. Before the repairs began, the room, which hosted world-famous personalities of its time, such as composer Joseph Haydn, was in a state of emergency.

Since the opening, concerts of classical music have regularly been held in the hall with a capacity of one hundred people. "We have a loyal audience that has found its way to us. The concerts are often full," said the curator.

Jezeří Castle was the first monument to be included in the list of the seven most endangered monuments in Europe, published in 2020 by the cultural heritage organization Europa Nostra. The castle on the slope of the Ore Mountains was originally supposed to be demolished due to mining, but it was later decided that the mountain would remain. This year's visitor season for the castle will end on the first weekend of November.