The repair of the roof of the church in Bučovice has begun
08.04.2022
In the second half of March the repair of the roof of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Bučovice has begun.
The construction works are mainly focused on the repair of the roof truss, the construction of plumbing elements including the sanktusnik and the replacement of the roofing. The work is being carried out by H & B delta, s.r.o.
The repair should be completed in August this year. The total expenditure amounts to 5 million. CZK. The implementation is part of the project "Organ restoration and revitalization of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Bučovice", for which the parish of Bučovice managed to obtain a grant from the EEA Grants 2014 - 2021 under the programme Culture. Another significant financial support was provided by the South Moravian Region. The parish is also grateful for the generosity shown by small donors.
The early Baroque Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is an immovable cultural monument registered in ÚSKP register No. 40196/7-3602 and forms an important dominant feature of the square in Bučovice. The church was built in 1637-1641 under Maximilian of Liechtenstein by the Swiss-Italian architect Giovanni Giacomo Tencalla in the Baroque style. In 1642 the church was consecrated by the Olomouc canon Kašpar Karas of Rhomstein. The oratory and the chancel were added in 1748 by the Austrian architect Anton Erhard Martinelli. In the 1820s, a classical reconstruction was carried out, side aisles and a classical entrance with a double tower and an anteroom were built. The main interiors of the church are embellished with stucco figural decoration by Jan Schubert.
The existing church roof was rebuilt after a fire in 1934. In 1934 the church was destroyed by fire. It originated in the rear of the church roof in the small tower above the altar and quickly spread to the entire roof above the church vault and then both towers in high winds. The fire completely destroyed the wooden structure of the church roof and the towers. The very next day after the fire, the remains of the roof trusses were taken down and the church was temporarily covered. In the same year, a new roof was erected and the entire roof was covered with tiles. The work was carried out by local companies - Jan Klement for plumbing and Jan Doupovec for the roof. Drawn from: Michalčík, Miloslav: Bučovice, my hometown. Bučovice 2012, pp. 48-50. Although the current roof of the church is the result of a restoration in 1934, it was built to match the historical appearance and thus contributes to the authentic expression of the architecture and is subject to historic preservation.
However, currently the roof covering and plumbing elements are aged and show failures. The plating of the sanctus tower is at the limit of its life, the roof of the tower is shot through, as is the poppy. The current state of the entire roof of the nave is therefore so unsatisfactory that its restoration must be seen as necessary to prevent irreversible damage.
The new roof will help to ensure the good condition of the entire church building, which serves not only for church purposes, but also for educational (lectures, organ course), cultural and social (concerts, exhibitions and other events) and tourist purposes.
Information on the EEA and Norway Grants