In the national consciousness the Royal Castle in Warsaw evokes a univocal association with the history of the Polish State, with its splendours and miseries in the past centuries and its rebirth after the 2nd World War. For many centuries it was the witness of historic events, a symbol of national unity and state independence. Now, enriched with new values, the Castle expresses the unity of feelings, beliefs and endeavours of the Poles. It became the symbol hewn anew in the old material of patriotic emotions and the sense of national identity, affecting the contemporaries through its history that embodies the history of the nation.
According to the author, a technique of faithful reconstruction of warp, wefts and knots, widely employed in the conservation of carpets, is not devoid of flaws such as distending and damaging of wefts and knots caused by a deep piercing of a needle, not always recommended use of cloth for doubling et.c. The Atelier of Textile Conservation in the Royal Castle has worked out a method of protective conservation with partial reconstruction with the use of chiffon, natural silk or bolting cloth as a doubling fabric. After preliminary routine treatment, carpets are protected with a shallowly introduced warp and a technique of the laid thread instead of wefts; knots are reconstructed by tieing them through a doubling fabric. This technique interferes with the historic substance to a small degree only; it reinforces the object and thanks to the doubling fabric, reconstructed places are more clearly marked on the reverse, which protects them against mistakes in case of studies of the object made by art historians.
An archaeologist and longtime employee of the Royal Castle in Warsaw, Jerzy Garus passed away in August 2014. Born in 1949 in Oświęcim, he graduated in Mediterranean archaeology in 1967. In 1981 he started his work at the Royal Castle in Warsaw and remained there for the rest of his professional life. As a director of the Archaeological Department, he supervised many excavations carried out at the Castle. Author of scientific and popular science articles on archaeology and Ancient times. From the beginning of his career at the Castle, he had actively participated in social activity of NSZZ “Solidarność”, firstly at the company branch, then as a longtime president of the National Board of Museums and Institutions Protecting Monuments. Jerzy Garus was a humble, open and kind person devoted to other people. Everyone who met him will always remember his social activity in the field of national cultural institutions and his concern for ordinary people. In recognition for his service for the Royal Castle in Warsaw, Jerzy Garus was awarded MERENTIBUS medal and the Gold Cross of Merit posthumously.
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W sierpniu 2014 r. zmarł Jerzy Garus – archeolog, wieloletni pracownik Zamku Królewskiego w Warszawie. Urodził się w 1949 r. w Oświęcimiu, w 1967 r. ukończył studia archeologiczne o specjalizacji śródziemnomorskiej. W 1981 r. został zatrudniony w Zamku Królewskim w Warszawie, gdzie pracował do końca życia. Jako kierownik Działu Archeologicznego kierował wieloma badaniami wykopaliskowymi na terenie Zamku. Był autorem publikacji naukowych i popularnonaukowych o tematyce archeologicznej i antycznej. Od samego początku pracy w Zamku podjął także aktywną działalność społeczną w NSZZ „Solidarność”, najpierw w Komisji Zakładowej, a później w Krajowej Sekcji Muzeów i Instytucji Ochrony Zabytków, której był wieloletnim przewodniczącym. Postawę życiową Jerzego Garusa charakteryzowała skromność, poświęcenie dla bliźnich, otwartość i życzliwość. Wszyscy, którzy się z Nim zetknęli będą pamiętać Jego działalność społeczną w skali całego kraju, związaną z instytucjami kulturalnymi i dbałość o zwykłego człowieka. Jerzy Garus w uznaniu zasług dla Zamku Królewskiego w Warszawie otrzymał medal MERENTIBUS, pośmiertnie został odznaczony Złotym Krzyżem Zasługi.
Prof. Marek Kwiatkowski, born on 25 April 1930 in Caen in France, passed away on 10 August 2016 in Warsaw. He was a historian of art, a museum professional, a historian of Warsaw, the author of a dozen books, an academic lecturer and an outstanding expert in architecture from the Stanisław August period. From 1995 he held the post of Director of the Royal Łazienki Museum. He devoted 48 years of his life to this magnificent historical palace and garden complex founded in the 18th century. For his numerous services to the field of culture, art and tradition he was awarded the title of Honorary Citizen of the Capital City of Warsaw as well as Honorary Citizen of the Węgrów District. He was also awarded the Order of Polonia Restituta, the Gold Cross of Merit, the Order of St. Stanislaus, the Order of St. Prince Lazar and the Order of the Smile. In 2005 he was also decorated with the Gloria Artis Gold Medal for Services to Culture.
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Prof. Marek Kwiatkowski urodził się 25 kwietnia 1930 r. w Caen we Francji, zmarł 10 sierpnia 2016 r. w Warszawie. Był historykiem sztuki, muzealnikiem, varsavianistą, autorem kilkudziesięciu książek, nauczycielem akademickim oraz wybitnym znawcą architektury z czasów króla Stanisława Augusta. Od 1995 r. pełnił funkcję dyrektora Muzeum Łazienki Królewskie. Temu historycznemu, wspaniałemu zespołowi pałacowo-ogrodowemu założonemu w XVIII w. przez Stanisława Augusta Poniatowskiego poświęcił w sumie 48 lat swojego życia, dając z siebie w pracy wszystko. Za swoje liczne zasługi w zakresie kultury, sztuki i tradycji otrzymał tytuł Honorowego Obywatela m.st. Warszawy, a także Honorowego Obywatela Powiatu Węgrowa. Przyznano mu również Krzyż Komandorski Odrodzenia Polski, Złoty Krzyż Zasługi, Order św. Stanisława, Order św. Łazarza i Order Uśmiechu, zaś w 2005 r. został odznaczony Złotym Medalem Zasłużony Kulturze Gloria Artis.
1915 • The invasion of Warsaw by the Germans, occupation of the Castle fo r governor’s offices. The in itia tio n of the work of the Society fo r the Protection of Relics of the Past — undertaking of inventory works, headed by Kazimierz Skorewicz, architect. 1915-1918 • The continuation of measurements, studies on the oldest part of the Castle known as the Greater Manor, uncovery of the Gothic facade, d ra wing o f the photographic documenta tio n o f interiors and the mass of the Castle, repair works in the hall in the o u tbu ilding near the Grodzka Gate and repair of the floors in some of the rooms and in the Royal Chapel. 1918 • Placing the Castle at a disposal o f the minister of military affairs. 1919 19.02 — inclusion of the Castle, Belweder, Łazienki Park and Wawel Castle into representative buildings of People's Poland, the establishment of the State Administration o f Representative Buildings with K. Skorewicz as its president. 1919-1923 • Conservation works in cellars and in the ground flo o r of the Gothic wing — revealing of the stairs leading onto a sentry porch in a Renaissance Two P illa r Room, works in the Saxon wing — hanging of restored portraits of kings in the Conference Room, renovation of J. B. Plersch’s wall p a in tings, p lacing of the portraits of kings in the M arb le Room after removing Russian tapestries, completion of an iron construction relieving the celing in the Ball Room. 1923 • Closing down the State A dm in istration of Representative Buildings. 1924 • Entrusting the protection of the Castle to the Committee of Works in Representative Buildings, with K. Skorewicz as chairman. 1924-1928 • The period of intensive conservation works, architectonic, excavation and archival studies, restoring Castle facades (west, south, part of the east) their architectonic form from before 1825, exchange of roof constructions for reinforced concrete one, p a n tile roofing. 1928 • The recalling of K. Skorewicz from the post of the head of castle works and appointing J. Seredyński and then A. Szyszko-Bohusz (both a rchitects) to this function, continuation of conservation works, recovery of valuable elements of the interior o u tfit. 1930 • 17.04 — the establishment of State Committees fo r the Renewal of the Warsaw Royal Castle and the Wawel Castle. • 07 — discussions on a d ra ft plan of A. Szyszko-Bohusz for the development of the land on the Vistula, decision to exchange castle roofings from tiles into copper sheet. 1931 • The renewal of the south facade, restoring the appearance from the t i me of Sigismund III, complex restoration of the Grodzka Tower — removal of an ogival cupola and the introduction of a viewing terrace. 1932 • The administration of the Castle is taken over by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. 1933 • Construction and conservation works in the upper floor of the north wing, in the Batory Room and in a gallery with tapestries. 1935 • The restoration of the ground floor in the south wing and its earmarking for premises of the Military and Civic Chancellery of the President of People's Poland. 1939 • 6.09 — the President of People’s Poland and officers of the Military and Civic Chancellery leave the Castle. • 8.09 — transfer of a cinerary urn with the heart of Tadeusz Kościuszko and a prayer book of Queen Bona from the Royal Chapel to St John’s Cathedral. • 17.09 — ’’The Black Sunday" — bombardment of the Castle, fire covered attics and cupolas of the Sigismund and Vladislaus Towers. Fire brigades, military men, workers of the Castle including its custodian Kazimierz Broki as well as other municipal services and workers of the National Museum including its director Stanisław Lorentz participated in putting out the fire in the Castle and the Cathedral, in saving and protecting the structure and its collections. K. Brokl, custodian, died at the post. 1939-1940 • 11.01 — Wehrmacht's sappers p repare the Castle for blowing up; p lu n dering and devastation go on. A t the same time Polish services continue to rescue elements of the Castle's equipment. 1944 • Blowing up of the walls in December by Wehrmacht’s sappers. 1945 • 6.06 — the establishment of the Workshop of the Reconstruction of the Castle within the framework of the Department of Historic Arch ite c tu re in the Office fo r the Reconstruction of the Capital (BOS), headed by Jan Zachwatowicz, arch ite c t; compiling of archival, iconographie materials, development plans fo r castle buildings, drawing plans for the reconstruction. 1947 • Removing the rubble from the ca stle site, cataloguing — as instructed by Professor J. Zachwatowicz, Conservator General — of rescued details, assemblying of the o rigina l p o rtal of the Grodzka Gate. The Conservator of Monuments of the City of Warsaw (Piotr Biegański, architect) entrusts Jan Dąbrowski, architect, with the task to prepare a plan fo r the reconstruction of the castle (J. D ą browski was then inspector of Sta n islaus monuments in the Conservation Office). 1948 • Further works at rubble clearing, protecting and cataloguing of the preserved parts of walls and stonework (window framings, sculptures, mouldings, cantilevers et.c.). 1949 • 1.05 — Memorial on placing the Museum of Polish Culture in the reconstructed Royal Castle in Warsaw, elaborated by the W—Z Workshop • 2.07 — unanimous adoption and passing the law on the reconstruction of the Castle presented a t a session of the Parliament by Prime M inister Jozef Cyrankiewicz; starting the reconstruction of the castle elevation from the side of the W -Z route. 1950 • 30.07 — the establishment of the State Enterprise referred to as „th e (Management fo r the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle” with a view to carry o u t execution works, prepare technical and equipment documentation, carry out research work and studies, control the councils and to establish the Council /of the Social Surveillance. • 21.09 — the establishment of the Committee fo r the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle with Prime Minister Jozef Cyrankiewicz as its president. • the continuation of rubble cleat/ing, carrying out archaeological and architectonic studies. 1951 • 01 — presentation o f a d ra ft plan fo r the reconstruction, app ointin g the Enterprise for Monument Architectural Stoneworks to perform the works and arch. Aleksander Krol, architect, as surveillance inspector; holding up the works due to, i.a., passing ■'the law on the reconstruction of the Old Town. • The transfer of the Castle Workshop to the State Ateliers for the Conservation of Cultural Property (PKZ) 1952 • The creation of the Interim Management of the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle headed by A. Krol; initiation of preparatory works, continuation of archaeological and architectonic studies. 1953 • The continuation of research and archaeological works on the site of the Castle headed by Aleksandra Swiechowska and Zdzisław Tomaszewski. 1954 • Opening of the competition for "Architectonic and Town-Planning Solution of the Zamkowy (Castle) Square and the Adjoining Area of the Old and New Town in Warsaw” — 9 teams took part in it. 1955 • 19.02 — Decision of the jury: 1st prize was not awarded; two 2nd prizes were awarded to the teams headed by architects Jan Bogusławski and Romuald Gutt. 1956 • The decision on the implementation of the plan by J. Bogusławski, made at a spring session of the Warsaw Team of the State Commission for Economic Planning, attached to the Praesidium of the Council of Ministers; opening of the Zamek (Castle) Architectonic Workshop, headed by J. Bogusławski, within the PP PKZ; the continuation of cataloguing the preserved elements, preparation of plans for the reconstruction of the Castle. 1957 • 4.07 — the creation of a consultive team for the reconstruction of the Castle, known as "the Commission for the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle in Warsaw" with Professor Jan Zachwatowicz as its president; working out a detailed programme for the adaptation of the Castle to the needs of the Museum of Polish Culture as well as some of the rooms to the needs of Polonia. 1958 • 14.02 — The Resolution of the Municipal National Council on the intensification of preparatory works associated with the reconstruction of the Castle and the creation in the Castle of the National Museum of the Millennium of Polish Culture. 1959 • The protection of parts of the walls of the south projection, reconstruction of cellars, conservation works at the Grodzka Tower. 1960 • A new concept of the reconstruction of the Castle, i.e. erection of three wings (south, west and north) earmarked fo r the Youth Touristic Centre, Registrar’s Office and the Information Centre of the National M unicipal Council; approval by the Commission of the plan of the p rotection of castle Gothic cellars. 1961 • 12 — the decision not to reconstruct the Castle in the nearest five years; suspending the activities of the Zamek Architectonic Workshop, holding up designing works, transfer of the documentation to the N a tio nal Museum. 1960-1962 • Architectonic studies on ce lla r walls in the Royal Castle by Antoni Kąsinowski. 1962-1964 • The decision of the Praesidium of the National M unicipal Council to set in order the castle site; the works done included levelling of the preserved castle walls to the equal height, except fo r the preserving of p a rt of the projection of the Saxon wing with the so-called Żeromski window in its fu ll heig h t; paving the Great Courtyard with stone plates; putting up of bricked walls up to 1 m in height to encircle the outline of the walls of castle wings. • Further voluntary works on documentation carried out by the workers of the Former Zamek Architectonic Workshop; meeting of the Section of Warsaw History attached to the Society of Warsaw Lovers, in which the Institute of History of the Polish A ca demy of Sciences also took part — it was postulated to engage social means in the campaign of reconstructing the Castle. 1966 • Conservation and construction works, carried out by the PP PKZ in the former Deputies’ Room (the so- called Two Pillar Room), Gothic ce llars, Kubicki’s Arcades, Freemansons’ Box, Grodzka Tower; completion o f the works in the Stanislaus Library and in Bacciarelli Room (afte r the design by Jan Bogusławski and Irena Oborska). 1969 — Conservation and construction works carried out by the PP PKZ, the restoration of Royal Kitchens and the revealing and protection of parts of Gothic walls in the Small Manor. 1970 — The establishment o f the Commission for the Studies "on the Royal Castle with Professor S. Lorentz as its president, attached to the Institute of History; the programme of the a c tivities of the Commission included compiling documents on the history of the Castle, publishing monographies and p opular and research works and source materials, completing in formation on the preserved parts of the Castle, making bibliographies of the structure, organization of scientific symposia. 1971 • 20.01 — a meeting of the representatives of creative circles with the 1st Secretary of the Central Committee of the PZPR, Edward Gierek; p ro c la iming of the decision on the in itia tion of the reconstruction of the Castle. • 26.01 — inauguration meeting of the Civic Committee for the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle in W a rsaw (OKOZK), with Jozef Kępa as its president. • 27.01 — opening of the Office of the Civic Committee fo r the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle, seated in a building at 10, Zamkowy square. • The creation of specialized commissions attached to the OKOZK: the Scientific Historic Commission — president S. Lorentz, the Architectonic and Conservation Commission — President J. Zachwatowicz, — the Archaeologic Commission — president A. Gieysztor, the Propaganda Commission — president L. Wysznacki, the Commission fo r the Castle Fund — president W. Lubiński, the Commission for Social Actions — president A. Boredzki, the Polonia Commission — president F. Skibiński. The PP PKZ (the State Ateliers for the Conservation of Cultural Property) were appointed general executor of the reconstruction. On January 29, 1971 the Zamek Architectonic Workshop attached to the Warsaw Office of the PKZ was reinstituted, with Professor J. Bogusławski as general designer. • The Architectonic and Conservation Commission (КАК) was empowered with making decisions pertaining to the restitution of the Royal Castle in Warsaw; the Management fo r the Town Development (Warsaw — East) was appointed as sobstitute investor. • 23.03 — second plenary meeting of the OKOZK, preliminary presentation of the plan fo r the development of the Castle. • 15.04 — the Zamek Workshop, headed by W. Samojło, began its a c tivities. • 3.05 — undertaking of archaeologic and architectonic studies on the castle site, carried out by Aleksandra Świechowska and Antoni Kqsinowski. • 09 — the first delivery of bricks to the Castle from a brick-kiln at Kraśnik Lubelski. • 30.09 — the Architectonic and Conservation Commission approved a preliminary plan for the reconstruction of the Castle (branch design offices pa rticipating in it included, i.a., the instalprojekt Industrial Research and Design Office (Warsaw), the Design Office of General Building (Warsaw), the Radio- and Tele-Communication Research and Design Office (Warsaw), the Main Refrigerating Centre (Cracow), the Meramont Automotion Design Office (Poznań), "M o s to s ta l” (Zabrze). 1972 • 1.01 - a branch office of the PP PKZ referred to as " th e Management of the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle in Warsaw” began its a c tiv ities aimed at complex works ranging from designs to execution and coordination. Z. Drankowski, architect, was appointed its director. • 09 — a glass case put a t Zamkowy square, with the model of the Royal Castle. • 09 — the Stanislaus Library — a display of selected works of art, rescued a t the Castle and kept at the National Museum. • Intensive executianal works are under way — removing rubble from the cellars; mass partic ip a tio n of the society in castle works; protection of the foundations; revealing a Gothic arched cellar in the Gothic wing at the Two Pillar Room and of an o riginal arch in the foundation of the Grodzka Tower; uncovery of the second internal wall made from Gothic brick during the lining of foundation walls in the tower; protection of a Gothic cellar under Zamkowy square a t the wesf wing; protection and making- up of old walls, lining of the foundations of the Saxon, Gothic, south, west and north wings; erection of new cellar walls, walls of the ground flo o r of the Gothic and south wings; arranging the roofing over the ground floor in the west part; erection of the walls of the 2nd flo o r in the Gothic wing. 1973 • The first wisp over the Royal Castle; raising the walls up to the roof in the Gothic, south and west wings; putting up provisional door and win dow woodwork; assemblying a steel roofing construction over the Grodzka Tower, insulation and damp-proof works on the roofs, timbering and reinforcement of the celings in ce llars and over ground floors in the Gothic, Saxon, north and south wings, arrangement and segregation of preserved sculptures and gypsum models, stone works on the elevations of the Gothic and south wings; putting up of crowning mouldings and of cordon belt under the crowning moulding, of elements of original mouldings and window bands. • The formation of the Custodian Office which comprised: Stanisław Lorentz (president), Jan Zachwatowicz, Aleksander Gieysztor and, ex officio, representatives of the PP PKZ, i.e. architects Mieczysław Samborski and Irena Oborska, custodians of the National Museum including dr Andrzej Rottermund, director of the Committee Office and Jerzy Baranowski, Wojciech Lipiński, heads of those sections of the National Museum which had collections associated with the Castle, Bożena Maszkowska i Krystyna Sroczyńska, and fin a lly Jacek Cydzik, architect, on behalt of the Ministry of Culture and Arts. 1974 • 02 — putting up and walling up of the coat of arms of Vazas a t the Sigismund Tower; putting of p re fa b ricated plates on the roofing of the north and south wings; completion of finishing works of sills and of the cordon belt in the 2nd flo o r; putting damp-proof insulation on the roofing from the side of the Great Courtyard. • 04 — first works on the assemblying of the cupolas from the side o f Zamkowy square and the Great Courtyard; putting ceramic tiles on the roofing. • 06 — putting up of cloak disks a t the Sigismund Tower; liftin g and positioning of cupolas on corner turrets in the west — north and west and south wings. • 3.07 — completion of "th e clock opera tio n ” , installing the clock-works and bells. • 6.07 — placing the cupola on the Sigismund Tower. • 19.07, 11.15 hrs — putting the clock on the Sigismund Tower into operation. • 22.07 — a meeting of the OKOZK; ceremony of handing over the moss of the Castle in a raw state. 1975 The formation of the Management of the Royal Castle, an executive body of the OKOZK to replace the fo r mer Office fo r the Reconstruction, with R. Lipiński as director; arrangement of exhibitions and meetings in the Castle and of the so-called Sunddays on the Castle (making castle premises open to the public) • The continuation of executional works; putting installation equipment, stone elements on the elevations; commencement of stucco works inside the Castle: in the Canaletto Room, Officers’ Room, the Mirowska Room, the Audience Room, the Royal Sleeping Room and museum rooms in the 2nd flo o r; drawing the documentation fo r swimming pools and fo u n tains situated at an upper terrace from the side of the Vistula. 1976 • Finishing works in the interiors of the Gothic and south wings, stucco works, erection of the racks for wainscotting, putting of ceramic and marble floors, exchange of provisional window and door woodwork, gilding works (decorative elements), placing reconstructed sculptures in the south and north wing as well as statues crowning the tympana in the Saxon wing from the east side. • 08 — a subsequent meeting of the Architectonic and Conservation Commission, decision on external colours o f the plasters on castle elevations. • 26.01 — The Audience Room — meeting of the Civic Committee for - th e Reconstruction of the Royal Castle; handing over of rooms and castle premises of the Gothic wing and p a rtia lly of the Saxon and south wings (the first stage of finishing works). • Implementation works, placing of stone sculptures on the roofs of the Saxon elevation (from the Vistula’s side), completion of reconstructional works on the bas-reliefs of the left tympanum of the Saxon wing. 1978 • 11.05 - the Senate Room, a plenary session of the Civic Committee fo r the Reconstruction o f th e Royal Castle. • 22.0/ — completion or plastering works on elavations, paving Zamkowy square, the Great and Triangular Courtyards with permanent surface dressing; completion of stucco works in the Senator's Room. • 16.10 - a building o f the Cadet O ffice r College (the so-called Podchorqiawka), a display "The Reconstruction of the Royal Castle in W a rsaw in 1971-1978” — information on the events that took place in those years, display of some gifts, museum objects and drawing concerning ca stle interiors. 1979 • 1.11 — the inclusion of the Section of the PP PKZ ’’the Mamagement of the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle in Warsaw” into the Branch Office PP PKZ Warsaw. • 5.11 — meeting of the Praesidium of the Government, decree on the establishment of a state organization referred to as ’’th e Royal Castle in Warsaw — the Monument of History and National Culture", and on the formation of the Management of the Castle. • Implementation works, completion of plastering works inside the castle, flooring, putting into operation of the technical installation placed underground and in the attics, the co n tinuation of g ild in g works on details, decorative architectonic elements in castle interiors, placing marble portals in the Marble Room, reconstruction of stuccos in the framings of the portraits of renowned Poles, stoneworks, putting up of a stone ballustrade over the arcades of the Saxon wing, completion of putting marble floors in all halls of the ground floor as well as in bathrooms in gest apartments in the 2nd floor. • Finishing works in the interiors of the 1st floor of the Gothic wing — the aisle before the Chapel, Canaletto Room, Audience Room, the Royal Sleeping Room, the Study and the Royal Dressing Room; of the Saxon wing — the Yellow Room, Batory Room, Council Room, Concert Room, Throne Room, Conference Room, M arble Room, a Vladislaus staircase, the Knights, Room; of the north wing — the Matejko Rooms; of the west wing — a Sigismund staricase; of the south wing — Officers’ Room, the Gallery ot me to u r Seasons ot tne Year. 1980 • 14.07 — the Prime Ministe/ a p p o ints Professor dr Aleksander Gieyszto r to the post of Director of the Royal Castle in Warsaw; completion of the activities of the Custodian Office headed by St. Lorentz. • Implementation works, continuation of g ild in g '“ works on decorative stucco elements encircling plafonds in historic rooms in the 1st floor of Saxon and Gothic wings; finishing works on the bed-moulding of the conches with caissons, coloured cornice with a belt of stucco imitating marble (the Ball Room), suspending of the bed-moulding, coating of the walls with coloured marble (the M arble Room), g ild in g works on the cornice and high bed-moulding (the Senate Room. 1981 • The continuation of finishing works in the rooms of the Saxon wing, p la cing of fine decorative elements on the cornices and bed-moulding, stucco- works on the cornice and bed- moulding crowning the level of the 2nd tie r of the Ball Room, p reparation of the ceiling and a small suspended bed-moulding fo r painting works on the plafond, a colourful composition in the Marble Room. 1982 • Implementation works, presenting individual castle rooms fo r the acceptance (by regions set out according to the agreed nomenclature). • 14.04 — reqion VI part II, i.a. rooms o f the Saxon and north wings. • 16.04 — region XIII part II, i.a. the Matejko Rooms which represent a link between the Saxon and west wings, interpreters’ booths and the Senate Room. • 21.05 — region XIII part I occupying the north part of the west wing. • 11.06 — presenting for the acceptance of further rooms of the guest part of the west wing as well as the south one. 1983 • Implementation works, presentation of costle rooms fo r the acceptance. • 24.02 — region VII part A, i.a., gallery of the 2nd floor, senators' staircase. • 30.05 — region VII part B, i.a., cellars and communication runs. • 10.03 — region VII part C, i.a., the Monarchs’ Gallery. • The continuation of gilding, conservation and finishing works, fixing or tne giiaea rosettes in winaow ana uoor reveais in tne Canaletto Room; acceptance ot the a lta r; painting of the wainscotting decoratea with elements of gilaed woodwork in the rooms of tne south wing. 1984 • Implementation works, handing over of historic rooms and other p remises. • 4.01 — region VIII part B. — the Green, Yellow, Royal and Dressing Rooms, Vladislaus Staircase (the Saxon wing). • 25.01 — region XV part В — rooms 144—147, Sigismund Staircase (the west wing). • 31.03 — region VIII part С — i.a. the Throne, the Conference Room, rooms 113, A and B, 115 A (the Saxon wing). • 30.04 — region VIII part D — the Audience Room, the Royal Sleeping Room, the Urodzka Staircase, rooms /24—127 A and 3 (the Gothic wing and partia lly the south wing). • 29.06 — region XVII — the Knights’ Room (the Saxon wing). • 30.6 — region X — elevations exc luding the north one, pa rt of the roofing, the Great Courtyard, in s ta llations of industrial TV, illumination, transportation hatch and drying duct. • 06.07 — region XVIII — the M arble Room (the Saxon wing). • 09.07 — region XV — the Deputies Room, rooms 138, 140, Sigismund Staircase, 1st floor. ≫ 17.07 — region VIII part E — rooms 27 A, E (the south wing). • 30.08 — region XI — east elevation without the ground floor, upper terrace, retaining wall, illuminations. • 21.10 — a solemn meeting of the OKOZK in the Royal Castle; handing over of castle rooms to the user, i.e. to the institution referred to as ’’the Royal Castle — the Monument of H istory and National Culture” , the creation of the Council of the Royal Castle. • 30.10 — the Royal Castle — a c e remony attended by the supreme state authorities, handing in and p la cing of a cinerary urn with the heart o f Tadeusz Kościuszko in the Royal Chapel. From 1985 • The continuation of reconstruction works in the Ball Room, works on the Saxon elevation with a terrace and in castle gardens.
The author makes an attempt at setting in order the terms used in connection with the Royal Castle. Attention is drawn to the fa c t th a t as a matter of fa c t the thing is to analyze the actions associated with the Castle and to determine whether and to what degree these actions were covered by monuments’ conservation. The terminology used in Polish, fo r from being precise, does n o t make this task any easier. For many years until 1945 the term ’’reconstruction” had been used when referring to the Castle in both documents and opinions of the architects and other specialists engaged with monuments’ conservation. Only as late as in 1979 in one of his articles Professor Jan Zachwatowicz, architect, president of the Architectonic and- Conservation Commission of the Civic Committee fo r the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle in Warsaw substantiated the term ’’ restitution" which has got adopted in a narrow circle of professionalists not without some hesitation. The main argument in favour of this term Professor Zachwatowicz derived from the meaning of the word: „re p a ra tio n of damages", revoking of unjust decision". Thus, he evoked the meanings from the sphere of morality, just as until then this term had not been used to describe actions within the fie ld of architecture. The a u thor o f this article supports the use of this term but only with regard to the Royal Castle in Warsaw, while still another reason fo r th a t is the respect fo r the Professor, who died in 1983. The Architectonic and Conservation Commission had been empowered with special capacities — the project approved by the Commission did not have to be approved by any other bodies. In practice, it decided about the form of all solutions. Taking advantage of the results of extensive studies the Commission had at its disposal unique material on the history and shape of castle interiors and elevations that had been there before its overtaking by Tsar’s authorities and before subsequent reconstructions. The Commission decided to restore the o rigina l appearance of a number of rooms and elevations according to historic records. Still, the Commission could not bring about the restoration of the Castle’s appearance from before the loss of in d e pendance by the Polish state. Not all historic reports were precise enough. Thus, both with regard to the elevations and interiors, the present condition of the structure is the result of a compromise between objective possibilities o ffe red by documents and contemporarily set functions* According to the author of the article the whole concept of the Castle illustrates the knowledge acquired by designers and the Commission in the seventies. At th e same time it is the result of jo in tly adopted compromises. Thus, further discussions on the possibility of other appearance of some rooms than th a t assumed are no longer rational, although it is worthwhile to extend this knowledge. There is an urgent need for publishing a complete documentation on the premises th a t prompted the Commission. This is necessary not only in order to present an objective character of the Commission’s work. This documentation is also due to the society th a t made voluntary contributions to this great work. There arises the basic question: what is the place of the restitution of the Castle in Warsaw in the history of monuments’ conservation. There is no doubt th a t the reconstruction of the mass itself, even with the introduction of all historic techniques and technologies in th e completion of the decorations of the interiors is not implied in the notion of monuments’ conservation. On the other hand, a broadly conceived process of compiling historic records together with comprehensive archaeological and architectonic studies on the site of castle ruins represent a typical element of conservation practice. Also, The in -b u ild in g of several thousands of authentic stone elements (cornices, framing, details of fig u ra i sculptures) as well as of stucco work and wood-carving into th e ir o rigina l places in the building should be regarded as the actions within the fie ld of monuments’ conservation. Also, the conservation of numerous examples of work of art such as paintings, decorative textiles, furniture ought to be included into the same ca te go ry of actions. A ll these operations make it largely possible to recognize restitution of the Royal Castle in Warsaw as the outcome of conservation endeavours. Still, one should not identify this building with the notion ’ ’the Royal Castle", though this term has been adopted by the Social Committee fo r the Reconstruction and this notion is included into the name of the museum found in its interiors. The Castle, the o rigina l seat of Polish kings, stopped performing its function a t the beginning of the 19th century and in the late fa ll of 1944 its walls, first burnt and then blown up, ceased to exist. This is the structure th a t embodies a great symbolic load respected by the society, which is not in contradiction with the fact^ that only some parts of the building have preserved th e ir origina l character and they include mainly elements of its fu rn ishing. The author draws attention to the fa c t that large reconstructions are not a unique work on our continent. He recalls the in te rn a tio n a l contest and then the construction (completed in 1984) of a group of houses in Ramerbog, the historic centre of Frankfurt on-the-Main (the FRG). Another example is the. reconstruction of the furnishing of the interior of the Golden Room in the town-hall in Augsburg, executed with gre a t artistry and based on the results of the discussion of professionalists (completed in 1986). The above two examples, crowned with success, fu lfille d undoubtedly the expectations of towns’ inhabitants and they finished a great process of the reconstruction a fter 1945. We could quote here many more examples of this kind of work. This is not tantamount to the readiness of monuments' conservators to undertake further reconstructions both on a town-planning scale as well as in the interiors of palaces or town-halls. Such phenomena should be rather analyzed by means of sociological criteria of the evaluation. Perhaps the people visiting the Royal Castle in the 21st century will see in it mainly the monument of opinions and public feelings in Poland in the seventies of the 20th century. Still, if they get moved when touching elements of the bricked wall in the groundfloor, see orifices drille d during the 2nd World War fo r blasts th a t did not explode, the efforts of builders and monuments, conservators of the third quarter of the 20th century will be rewarded.
The present issue of "Ochrona Zabytkow" has a specific nature. It contains the reports presented at a scientific conservation session entitled "The Restitution of the Royal Castle in Warsaw" organized on 2—4 September 1986 by the State Ateliers for the Conservation of Cultural Property (referred to as the PP PKZ) as part of the celebrations of the 35th anniversary of their existence. It was the first session devoted to that subject, but undoubtedly not the last one, jus t as the problem of the Castle is very important fo r Polish monuments' conservators. By devoting this issue of "Ochrona Zabytkow" entirely to problems of the restitution of the Royal Castle, the biggest and most d ifficu lt task carried out by the PP PKZ, the Editors wish to express their esteem for the accomplishments of the PP PKZ. In this issue the Readers w ill fin d both a presentation of the problems associated with national symbolism, which has always been an essential element — if not the motive power — of a ll undertakings in Poland, and considerations on the criteria of the evaluation and verification of attitudes towards conservation actions. It also gives an assessment of the undertakings, of technical, artistic and conservation skill, a ll of which were indispensable in the execution of this national work. The authors ask also many questions, to which no one has given the answer as yet. The present issue of "Ochrona Zabytkow" contains nearly a ll papers presented during the session. For the first time the floor was taken by those who won the battle of the Castle and who gained the words of esteem for their work. The attempt to evaluate this work is, of course, limited by the scope of our knowledge on the subject under discussion. Still, we can express our hope that the future will offer us the possibilities to resume it. The problems raised by the authors concentrate mainly on technical and conservation questions. Still, some place has been devoted to the attempt to determine the role of the Castle in the consciousness of the Poles in the period of partitions and in independent Poland. Great achievements of conservation work have been subjected to a thorough analysis. The time had passed since the completion of the work allowed for a critical analysis of the concepts adopted and solutions applied. Still, some of them give rise to certain reservations already today. They were stressed out also during discussions, in which 17 persons took part. The debaters presented their views on the perception of castle interiors, a scope and reliability of the information conveyed to the visitors by guides, quality and content of films shown to the guests. The subject that was frequently raised during the discussion was the lack of the information on the authors of this great work, i.e. the restitution of the Royal Castle, and the people thanks to whom this, national task was accomplished. The debaters pointed out the need to publish documents on conservation work — both the report of the Civic Committee for the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle and the protocols of the Architectonic and Conservation Commission. In the opinion of the speakers, the publication on the restitution of the Royal Castle also deserves editing. This great and honourable duty falls upon the Council of the Castle. The postulate, put forward before, to erect on the Castle's walls the plaque commemorating its erection and the names of the executors of this task to the present and future generations has been adopted. * * * The present issue of „O chrona Zabytkow" is dedicated by the Editors to a ll those who have contributed to the realization of the aspirations of the millions of Poles both in the country and abroad to restitute the Royal Castle in Warsaw.
The Royal Castle in Warsaw, rebuilt in its historic form, has been equipped with the most modern technical facilities. All facilities and fittings in historic interiors have been installed undiscernibly and concealed to the utmost degree so not to impair a historic decor of the interiors. Engineering control rooms have been situated at two levels of the Castle: — the attic houses air-conditioning equipment with a central control and dispatch system for "Light and Sound", social facilities for workers including a canteen; — the basement houses heating and cooling machinery, ventilating rooms, telephone exchange; — part of the Wielki (i.e. Great) Courtyard has been provided with cellars in order to secure a horizontal distribution of installations. The Castle has been equipped with a double system of power, heating and water supply to ensure continuous operation. 102 historic rooms have been provided with full air-conditioning and maintain constant parameters of air (humidity — 60% and temperature - 20%); at the same time this system functions as air heating. The electro-acoustic switchboard with cabling at 4 levels has been installed, which makes possible a two-way operation with almost every room. In order to enrich the artistic effect of the Castle it has been planned to hold "Light and Sound" spectacles as well as historic shows in the Castle’s courtyard. The cinema and lecture room, housing seats for 100, offers possibilities for the demonstration of films recorded on 35 mm and 16 mm wide tape, slide projection, recording of events as well as stereophonic reproduction of music. The Castle has also been equipped with antiburglary and fire protection systems. Altogether nearly thirty different installations have been put in there. The majority of the systems work faultlessly, which allows for an efficient operation of the Royal Castle. Still, some of the systems have not as yet been completed and they include: — industrial TV system — interpreters’ system — wireless information for visitors — heating of gutters — in-coming electronic system for the structure’s protection.
Notatki kustosza Muzeum Narodowego opublikowane w 1970 r. w drugim tomie książki Walka o dobra kultury, to jedyne ogólnodostępne świadectwo ratowania zabytków wilanowskich przez Jana Morawińskiego, zapomnianego bohatera z czasów II wojny światowej. Bezcenne ze względu na udokumentowanie przez Morawińskiego grabieży 137 obrazów należących do przedwojennej kolekcji Branickich w Wilanowie. Wspomniane Notatki zostały opublikowane przez Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy na podstawie rękopisu istniejącego w domowym archiwum córki ich autora, Agnieszki Morawińskiej. Sprawiają jednak wrażenie kartek wyrwanych z notatnika, w którym brakuje wcześniejszego rozdziału. Rozdział ten istnieje, ale z niewyjaśnionych przyczyn został pominięty w dwutomowym dziele pod redakcją prof. Stanisława Lorentza pt. Walka o dobra kultury. Warszawa 1939–1945. Niniejszy artykuł opiera się na rękopiśmiennym świadectwie Morawińskiego, popartym archiwalnymi źródłami i wspomnieniami kolegów z Muzeum Narodowego w Warszawie (MNW). Jan Morawiński od sierpnia 1939 r. do sierpnia 1944 r. ratował, wraz z innymi, bezcenne muzealia w gmachu muzeum, a także na terenie stolicy. Pakował zabytki do skrzyń, by przetrwały najcięższy okres i z narażeniem życia gasił pożary budynku muzeum. Ratował zbiory Zamku Królewskiego w czasie najcięższego bombardowania Warszawy, przewożąc je do magazynów w Alejach Jerozolimskich. Za swoje poświęcenie otrzymał z rąk gen. Juliusza Rómmla krzyż Virtuti Militari V klasy. Po kapitulacji Warszawy został mianowany kierownikiem magazynów i inwentarzy MNW – w czasie nieobecności dyrektora Lorentza był jego zastępcą. W pierwszym okresie okupacji odważnie stawiał czoła niemieckim urzędnikom. Kierował tajną akcją inwentaryzacji i dokumentacji zniszczeń i rabunków niemieckich. Wiedza zgromadzona w ten sposób była niezwykle pomocna w restytucji zagrabionych zabytków, nie tylko muzealnych. Brał także udział w dokumentowaniu zniszczeń Zamku Królewskiego. Schwytany przez Niemców, przeszedł przez Gestapo w więzieniu przy ul. Daniłowiczowskiej w Warszawie. W późniejszym czasie został kierownikiem Muzeum Dawnej Warszawy na Starym Mieście, a równolegle był także opiekunem zbiorów wilanowskich. Po upadku powstania warszawskiego brał udział w tzw. akcji pruszkowskiej, podczas której został ciężko ranny.
Preserved project in the collection of architectural designs in Archiv of Tylamn Gameren (Warsaw University, Cabinet of Designs) A. Miłobędzki interpreted as a project of west wing of Warsaw Castle made in beginning of 17th century. I suppose that this project show us a north wing of Warsaw Castle, with cornrpavillons and vaste pillar collonade looking at collegiate church St. John and Old Town of Warsaw.
PL
Przechowywany w zbiorze rysunków architektonicznych Tylmana z Gameren projekt A.Miłobędzki z interpretuje jako projekt skrzydła zachodniego Zamku Warszawskiego. Autor artykułu sugeruje, że projekt ukazuje północne skrzydło Zamku, zryzalitowane na narożach, otwierające się ku kolegiacie św. Jana i miastu wieloarkadową filarową kolumnadą.
Aleksander Gieysztor (1916–1999) był bez wątpienia jednym z najwybitniejszych przedstawicieli humanistyki polskiej XX wieku. Uważał się za historyka, a jego podstawowym miejscem pracy był Instytut Historyczny Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, zaś zainteresowania badawcze koncentrowały się wokół zagadnień kultury średniowiecznej. Muzealnikiem stał się, trochę wbrew własnej woli, w ostatnich dziesięcioleciach swojej aktywności zawodowej, obejmując w 1980 r. stanowisko dyrektora odbudowanego Zamku Królewskiego w Warszawie. Choć uważał się za historyka, Gieysztor był dobrze przygotowany do pełnienia tej funkcji, zawsze bowiem darzył wielkim zainteresowaniem źródła artystyczne, równie dlań ważne i czytelne jak narracja dziejopisa, akt prawny, czy zapiska kronikarska. Dał tym zainteresowaniom wyraz w licznych publikacjach, a także tworząc program i kierując w latach 1948–1955 pracami Zespołu Badań nad Początkami Państwa Polskiego. Zamek warszawski – ze względu na doniosłą rolę historyczną i symboliczną – zajął szczególne miejsce w działalności Gieysztora. Od samego początku wspierał on Stanisława Lorentza w staraniach o odbudowę Zamku, zaniechaną przez komunistyczne władze Polski. W 1971 r. został członkiem Obywatelskiego Komitetu Odbudowy Zamku, w którym kierował Komisją Archeologiczno-Historyczną. Od 1973 r. wszedł w skład zarządu tzw. Kuratorium Zamkowego – zespołu pełniącego kolegialnie funkcje dyrekcji. Wrażliwość estetyczna i erudycja artystyczna, a także głęboka znajomość kultury staropolskiej pozwoliły Gieysztorowi znakomicie odnaleźć się w gronie uczonych decydujących o kształcie i programie edukacyjnym odbudowywanego Zamku. Potem zaś – już samodzielnie – spełniać się w roli dyrektora kierującego jego urządzaniem. Była to – jak sam przyznawał – największa jego przygoda intelektualna w ostatnich dziesięcioleciach działalności naukowej. Traktował ją jako swą powinność – służbę wobec społeczeństwa złaknionego symboli kształtujących tożsamość historyczną.
Twelve years of the restitution of the Royal Castle in W a rsaw gave birth to ample documentation on build in g and conservation wotk, compiled into 95 volumes of 1,000 pages and nearly 2,500 photographs th a t represent a chronological record of all activities associated with the reconstruction of this structure. Because of an unorderly arrangement of the content of the work resulting from a s traight reg istration of successive operations it is really d iffic u lt to get from it any information. In order to eliminate this shortcoming it has been found necessary to add post-execution conservation d ocumentation which w ill present in a well-arranged form a course of research, scientific, design and executional work carried out fo r 25 rooms and the elevation of the Castle. The firs t volume of this documentation, covering the Canaletto Room, has already been prepared and a fter its approval it will become a standard example fo r future works.
The plan for the reconstruction of the Royal Castle and its surroundings, which was first put into life in 1971, took into consideration results of archaeological and architectonic findings of the earlier excavation work. At the same time further studies were carried out^ along with the commencement of constructional work, uncovering — on some occasions — elements not included in the plan. This made it necessary to undertake immediate decisions on the future of the structures. As rule, substantial criteria were employed; still the prevailing requirement arose from the concept of the plan of the construction as well as from economic considerations. Two medieval structures were preserved, completed and put out for use. They were: cellars of the building of the District Court of Justice (14th/15th cent.) at the west wing of the castle (photo 1) and the Bridge in front of the Cracow Gate (2nd half of the 15th cent.) in the Castle Square (Plac Zamkowy) (photo 9). The following elements were preserved under the ground: escarp of the Big House (1st half of the 15th cent., photo 2), foundations of pilaster-strips (2nd half of the 18th cent.) which had supported already non-existing balcony of the 1st floor of the Middle Projection (photo 4) and one of finely built waste-water wells. Because of the impossiblity of complying with the construction plans the following parts got destroyed: the foundation in front of the west elevation of the Big House, bespeaking of the intention to reconstruct the House in 1778 by Dominik Merlini (photo 7), extensive parts of the revetment (2nd quarter of the 18th cent.) on the East Terrace (photo 8) and all relicts of the structures on the Castle Square, uncovered at the time of its lowering in 1977 (photo 10). Because of the extent of adaptation costs it was impossible to preserve two 17th- century cellars in the building at 2, Podwale street (in the west part of the earlier mentioned Bridge) and three 18th- century cellars at 4, Podwale street (photos 11, 12, 13).
Afte r drawing by the Conservation and Architectonic Commission of "The Main Architectonic, Conservation and Technical Guidelines of the Reconstruction o f the Royal Castle” it was agreed to strictly preserve the b u ild in g ’s former outline, former ord'imate o f foundations and the inclusion of all preserved elements 'into a newly-built mass. The design office referred to as "th e Castle” commenced drawing the plans. The Royal Castle was assigned the function of the museum to be known as "the Royal Castle in Warsaw — the Monument of History and Culture of the Polish Natio n ” . With the preservation of the historic mass of the entire building, historic outlay as well as outside and inside decor, the structure was adopted to performing its new function. A p a rt from the museum, the building had been designed to house exhibition halls, representation and gir&st de p artments. Concerts, inte rn a tio n a l conferences and celebrations are also to be held there. Also, fo r (big meetings such as a cocktail fo r 2,000—3,000 people, banquets fo r 70 as well as providing food fo r castle employees a few catering c e n tres have been arranged. The introduction of such a rich programme into the Castle has limited, due to the lack of the space, the number of storerooms and household facilities. According to the earlier decisions these functions 'were to be taken over by the neighbouring buildings. The to ta l cubage of the Royal Castle amounts to 144,580 m3 and its to ta l usable area comes to 21,606 m2. A t the present moment the Royal Castle is one o f few museums in the world th a t iis housed in a historic building with most sophisticated technical equipment. That was a very d iffic u lt task fo r the designers. It was necessary to install a ir-conditioning equipment, ventilating fans, nearly 50 d iffe rent electric, power and tele-communication systems. All this varied technical equipment had to be installed in a specific historic mass of the Castle in an indiscernible way. • The mass of the Royal Castle was subjected to numerous alterations and reconstructions. The designers had to face a d iffic u lt decision: which solutions should be chosen? On the basis of comprehensive studies including rich source mate ria l they adopted the principle of preserving historic strata in elevations and different parts o f the building. The 17th-century Waza deviations were reconstructed according, as a rule, to the pre-war conditions; still, some amendments were made on the basis of period plans, drawings, photos and with respect to the results of the most recent archaeological and architectonic studies. Cornet turrets, lucarnes and chimneys were reconstructed on the fro n t elevation. The basis fo r this work was provided by the iconography, the so-called Hondius’ engraving from 1646, depicting the setting of the Sigismund’s Column. One of the most d iffic u lt problems in the restitution of the Castle’s mass was the mode of crowning the Grodzka Tower. The concept fo r the form of th e 14th century tower underwent various design stages and the fin a l solution was ba sed on Ch. Melich’s painting from 1625. Studies on all cu polas and crowning were carried out on models. The finest 18th-century Saxon elevation from the Vistula's side was rebuilt according to its pre-war appearance with some corrections made a fter 18th-century designs of Chiaveri and p aintings by Canaletto. The main difference co n sisted in the removal of the balcony from the 1st flo o r of the middle projection and introduction of high windows into the Assembly Room. According to the conservation guidelines castle interiors got divided into three groups. The firs t group covers rooms in the first floor, Stanislavus room, gothic underground rooms, Jagiellonian and Waza rooms in the ground floor. The most splendid interiors with many preserved elements include: rooms of King Stanislavus August, Canaletto Room, Stanislavus Chapel, the former Audience Room, the Royal Sleeping Room, the Throne Room, Conference Cabinet, the Kinghts’ Room and the Great Assembly Hall. ‘ A special group is made of the rooms which in the 19th and 20th centuries lost their 18th-century decor and a t present regain their original appearance on the basis of the preserved archival sources. Thev include the Senator’s Room where the 3rd May Constitution was proclaimed, the M a rble Cabinet and Deputies' Room. Special oare should be extended to reconstruct and build into historic places the preserved details of the architectonic decor such as stone elements of sculpture and sectional details, chimneys, wainscoting, doors, stucco columns, carved frontons, decorative fixtures. The second group comprises groundfloor rooms and cellars that perform the function of halls and museum cloarkrooms as well as the Treasury in the 2nd floor. The rooms included into the third group are, in the first place, to serve u tility purposes and they have been designed in a way th a t harmonizes with other interiors. In 1971 the State Ateliers fo r the Conservation o f Cultural Property in itiated, almost simultaneously, documentation and execution work. This was a serious impediment fo r the team of designers and executors, just as i t was necessary to coordinate a ll designs and at the same time to undertake executional decisions. The Royal Castle has been reconstructed in accordance with historic records, well-known in the seventies. For the last 15 years the knowledge on the history of the Castle has been enriched with newly-discovered source materials. In this context, decisions made during the reconstruction have to be reconsidered once again.
The Civic Committee fo r the Reconstruction of the Royal Castie 'in Warsaw, brought to life on January 26, 1971, established six problem commissions including the Architectonic and Conservation Commission headed by Profesor Jan Zachwatowicz. The Commission included renowned experts, who a t the same time represented buildings and construction authorities. Owing to that, the resolutions of the Commission could provide the base fo r making binding decisions. In specific cases the Commission followed the opinions of va rious specialists and regularly cooperated with other commissions and mainly with the Castle’s Custodian, established by Professor St. 'Lorentz, as w e ll as with the general executor (the State Ateliers fo r the Conservation of Cultural Property) and the assistant investor of the reconstruction of the Castle. Already on March 8, 1971 Professor Jan Zachwatowicz handed in the approved Main Programme Guidelines — as the binding document to the 'investor and the general excutor. The Main Guidelines set out the borders of the location of the castle residence, a historic mass of the structure, the principle of the restitution of the building, its interiors and surroundings. The Guidelines took also into account a ll in stallations that had to be p u t in when a d a p tin g the restituted building to new purposes. The material prepared in such a way provided the basis for working out a d ra ft p roje c t and a summary specification of costs. The project was to be drawn by November 30, 1971. Irrespective of the main guidelines there had also been prepared a programme fo r the use of the Castle, which — a fte r preliminary discussions in problem commissions was submitted on March 10, 1971 for approval to the Praesidium of the Civic Committee fo r the Reconstruction of the Castle. The Praesidium put forward this document fo r public discussion, which lasted till May 15, 1971. The comments and proposals of the society were analyzed and presented at the Plenary Meeting of the Civic Committee on June 30, 1971. Basing on them, the character and a p propriation of the Castle were determined and the o ffic ia l name of the b u ilding, namely "th e Royal Castle in Warsaw - the Monument ot History and National Culture” was adopted on the strength of the Law. As the chairman of the Architectonic and Conservation Commission Professor Jan Zachwatowicz conveyed to the executors the content of the Law adopted as well as de ta ile d resolutions fo r the execution. 1971 was the time of preparatory works. The Commission supervised a proper development of the constructional site, defined the way of demolitions and rubble-removal, fo llo wed the progress of research, archaeological and archite c to nic works. It also analyzed the activity of the Design Office which a t th a t time compiled a ll e arlier documents and a c complished the cataloguing during the removal of the rub ble, making lists of the rescued part o f the building and excavated details. It was planned to commence proper constructional work in the beginning of 1972 and the execution of the raw state of the b u ild in g was scheduled by the State Ateliers fo r the Conservation of Cultural Property by the end o f 1973. On June 1971 Professor Jan Bogusławski submitted to the Commission a substitute plan on a scale 1 :200 of the concept of the distribution of the utility programme and fu n ctions. The acceptance of this concept made possible for designers to start the project on a scale 1:100 in the a rchitectonic and constructional fie ld and to present p re liminary proposals of installation solutions and the entire technical infrastructure. A t the subsequent meetings a number of specific problems th a t arore during the designing stage were discussed. They concerned functional, technical and material problems as well as architectonic details. This p a rticu la r activity of the Commission *ped up design solutions, raised the quality o f projects, and imposed the rate of design and constructional work. Basic design work was done by the PKZ — the Castle and branch projects were carried out in specialized design o ffices such as "In s ta l Projekt", "M e tijo p rojek t", "M o s to s ta l". Due to the necessity to keep up such о fast rate of the execution o f work the Commission found it necessary to successively work out the documentation. It recommended to work out a schedule of the construction and approved a specification o f costs of the raw state o f the Castle. In the firs t months of 1972 the work in the cellars came to an end and in Ap ril of th a t year, there began to appear walls o f the groundfloor in the south wing from the side of the Route W—Z. The hope arose fo r the mass of the Castle to be completed in the raw state in 1974. A t th a t time activities of the Commission concentrated mainly on the analysis of the documentation necessary fo r pursuing the work. Still, the Design Office was instructed to work o u t complete technical documentation and to project the in te riors. Neariy 500 protocols from the meetings of the Commission display an enormous variety of the discussed subjects. A t the in itia i stage the Commission analyzed resuits or c o n structional work and historic, iconographie, architectonic and archaeological studies, which affected conservation d e cisions. In о similar way the commission studied the results of technical investigations, e.g. land resistance, hydrogeological conditions, technical conditions of preserved elements of the building, q u a lity o f materials such as brick, stone, mortars, stucco work, paintings on the plaster. I hey also considered a possibility to use anew numerous elements excavated from the rubble o r to replace them with a new material. The Commission discussed basic constructional and installation problems and verified main guidelines in case of new discoveries and results of the studies which justifie d the need to correct original decisions. Other subjects discussed in d e ta il .included the plan of each interior, a composition of wall, plafond and flo o r decorations, w in dow and d o o r joinery, details of decorations and furnishing, paintings, chandeliers, candle sticks, carpets, tapestries et.c. Mony elements of decoration and interior equipment were rescued and called fo r painstaking conservation. The Commission supervised the activities of the Workshops for the Conservation of Works of Art, Sculpture, Stucco, Metal A rt and other specialistic teams working on behalf of the Castle. A d iffic u lt task fo r the Commission was to agree the colouring of the interiors. When analyzing the proposals they took into account historic relays, the customs and trad itio n as well as the taste of a given epoch o r a ruler, and f i nally the functions of the room and its artistic effect. Some of the decisions are — until today — regarded as co ntroversial — and ca ll for further analyses. A similiar problem arose when examining the proposed solutions of some details of elevations and colours of in d iv idual walls in the Castle’s mass. Still another problem in the work of the Commission was the area a d jo in in g the Castle. The plan to set in order the Castle’s Square, to expose the Gothic Bridge and the Cracow Gate, to delineate the course of defence walls in the square’s surface and to combine it with the south escarp and the Palace "p o d Blachq" was the subject of numerous discussions a t the meetings of the Commission and fin a lly accepted. A similar a ttitu d e was shown to plans fo r castle gardens, Kubicki Arcades, Podzamcze and Gnojna H ill as sites fo r touristic purposes. The fin a l stage o f the activities of the Commission comprised quality and complex acceptance of all executed conservation, architectonic and building works. The A rch ite c to nic and Conservation Commission had been working incessantly fo r nearly 15 years, i.e. until the transference of the structure to the management of the Castle.
The artic le of director general of the main executor of works presents stages of their realization and principles of organization. Once the State Ateliers fo r the Conservation of Cultural Property (the PKZ) had been assigned that role the work was initiated immediately. Already in January 1971 a design office referred to as the Castle office was rea c tivated, with Jan Bogusławski as general designer. On April 15, 1971 Castle's Department of the PKZ was brought to life, giving thus the beginning to a branch office. Demolition and archaeological works as well as expert appraisements were undertaken. On November 30 the Architectonic and Conservation Commission of the Civic Committee for the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle approved a d ra ft architectonic plan. Thanks to the transfer of rights onto the Commission it could approve plans, executed then d irectly by the constructors. The principle of a simultaneous execution of studies, designing and realization works was employed from the very beginning. Only in that way it was possible to obtain the expected results. A p a rt from Castle’s Department of the PKZ teams from other branch offices (14 altogether) were included into the project as well as 28 specialized enterprises from a ll over the country. A lre ady at the outset of the works a big number of volunteers engaged themselves with simple jobs. Many producers d e livered constructional materials on a free of charge basis. Along with the progress of works new workshops were opened in the Castle branch office. Of importance was also the employing of new workers to be trained in disappearing professions such as stucco workers, gilders, tilers et.c. Thanks to them teams of rare craftsmen got developed; they stayed with the enterpise even after the completion of works at the Castle. Afte r consigning the mass of the building in a raw state on July 22, 1974. finishing works were commenced; after July 22, 1978 works were undertaken to accomplish technical outfit. The inside of the Castle was divided into several regions and its technical acceptance was done in stages to avoid the acceptance of the whole building. Owing to this it was possible to start furnishing with elements of wall tapestries, lighting equipment et.c. A special attention was paid to the workers, who got provided with good social amenities and were offered extensive training. Once the major part of the Castle was handed over to the management of the Museum, the institution o f the branch office referred to as "th e Castle" was dissolved and its employees joined W a rsaw’s office. The intensive, often strenous, work on the restitution of the Castle offered the possibility to gain much experience on a very broad scale. It also consolidated groups of professional workers at a unique project, a p atriotic nature of which is beyond any doubt. Still, first and foremost, the Royal Castle g o t restored according to the will of the Poles.
In December 1972 the Workshop for the Conservation of Works of Art was brought to life in a newly created branch office of the Atelier for the Conservation of Cultural Property, called the Main Office fo r the Reconstruction of the Royal Castle. Its task was the conservation of preserved elements of original decorations and the reconstruction of the interiors of 17 historic rooms. To this aim specialized teams were formed such as conservators of works of art, modellers, wood carvers and gilders. All, the preserved e le ments of the decor of the interiors, coming to ca 2,000 details, were passed by the National Museum in Warsaw to this Workshop as the main constructor. A wide variety of types of work, the number of o rigina l stucco, wood-carving and carpenter's elements which were to return to their original place required a specific a p proach to the entire problem as well as the drawing of a new model of conservation documentation. Because of the fact that each room represents a compact and homogenous set of decoration, it was decided to work out comprehensive documentation for indiv id u a l rooms. One set of the documentation contained information on the course of all works carried out by the Workshop fo r the Conservation of Works of Art. Treating the decor of the interior as one structure the information included contained data concerning authors, time and execution, authors of the reconstruction design, number of design documentation, general dimensions of the interior, its iconographie description and a short historic outline prepared by the Scientific and H i storic Documentation Department of the Castle’s branch office. Other data concerning technological construction, condition, causes of decay, programme and course of decay, programme and course of work were particularly expanded and they comprised all elements of the decor. The described details were presented in a uniform order: ceiling decorations, bed-moulding and cornices, wall decorations, wood-work. A uniform arrangement was also adopted in presenting the work done: conservation of preserved elements of stucco work, models of architectonic decorations, model of sculptor's decorations, conservation of original ele ments of wood carving, models for decorations in wood, reconstruction of elements carved in wood, conservation of old carpentry elements. The course of the works was w e ll- illu s tra te d with photographs showing the condition of de tails prior to, during and a fter conservation, models made, reconstructed wood-carved elements, gildings. Each documentation was provided with a location plan — projection of the 1st flo o r of the Royal Castle, pointing out the object discussed as well as a choice of the reproductions of archival photos. Attached were also photographs of the interiors th a t depicted the condition a fter reconstruction. Pictures of walls and projection of the ceiling, put on micro- filmed d ra ft drawings, show g raphically and descriptively the location of in -b u ilt original details of the decor. Copies of commissional agreements on idividual conservation and reconstruction problems, results of laboratory studies as well as extracts from the minutes of the meeting of the A rchitectonic and Conservation Commission on the agreements and the acceptance of individual stages of work as well a" the entire interiors have been added as enclosures. Documentation includes also conservation drawings in the scale of 1:1, 1:2 and 1:5 of o rigina lly preserved elements of the decor, depicting the condition, conservation and reconstruction work. Altogether 32 sets of conservation documents have been prepared, compiled into one volume, just as is the case with "O ffice rs ' Room" or eleven volumes in the case of "The Throne Room” or "The Room of the Knights". Individual documentations have 10 to 80 pages and 2 to 200 photographs. In order to accelerate the rate of work the team of reg istrars was assigned the task of a coordinator of the entire work carried out in the Workshop, inc lu d in g : — the analysis of the condition of the preserved rescued d e tails ; transportation from the place of storing and to ensure proper climatic conditions; — id e n tifica tio n and location of the elements based on the analysis of the available iconographie material, — preparing the lists (with regard to the quantity and q u ality) of missing element , — transfer of all material to idividual teams of specialists, — reg u la r supervision of the work done, — carrying out a descriptional and functional registration of successive stages of work and location of original elements, — preparing conservation documentation. The scale of the problem can be illustrated by the following d a ta : altogether 1,988 details of the decor of the interior of the Royal Castle were covered by conservation. Out of this number, 1,048 details were identified and situationed. 988 of them, corresponding to the adopted architectonic and conservation concept, were b u ilt into the present in teriors. The remaining elements coming from unaccentuated stages of reconstruction of interiors were given back to the management of the Royal Castle in Warsaw.
The subject-matter of the report is the European Award for the Conservation of Monuments, the Gold Medal of which was granted on October 30, 1981 to the Royal Castle in Warsaw. The aim of the Award, established in 1973 by the Hamburg F.V.S. Foundation and J. W. Goethe Foundation, is to commemorate unusual actions of individuals or social organizations that preserve Europe’s architectural heritage. The Conferment Certificate says, i.a., that it is granted in the recognition of outstanding achievements in the reconstruction of this symbol of the Polish nation which, damaged during war operations, was recreated in 1971—1981 thanks to voluntary contributions. It was also thanks to these efforts that the historic centre of Warsaw, the town so heavily experienced, stayed in its old place with its original walls preserved, the last and most important feature that was missing in the town complex. When evaluating these attainments one should point out full contribution of historians, archaeologists and architects who created foundations of rebuilding as well as fine work of all craftsmen. Thanks to their skill it was possible to reuse numerous elements of old stonework, details of architectural decor of the interiors and part of highly valuable amenities. If that reconstruction has got a unanimously high opinion this was the result of the fact that we have to do here not wih a perfect adaptation of methods and attitudes unapplied anywhere else but with the execution of original Polish conservation concept, i.e. reconstruction of the original spatial relation between preserved original relics.
Work on the restoration and restitution of the Castle’s stonework was commenced in 1971 with the recording of 2,500 de tails excavated from the ruins. The recognition of the elements was possible thanks to a close study of 2,300 photos of the Castle from the years of 1900—1944. A comparison of the results of locating individual elements in the elevations of the Castle and the results of a petrographie study made it possible to specify the kinds of stone used in the Castle over centuries. Fallowing a conservational and technical elimination 151 m3 o f historic stone substance have been chosen fo r further re-use. This accounted fo r 17 per cent of the total Castle’s stonework. Out o f this, preserved delails of the sculptures constituted 40 per cent of a ll sculptures and the preserved parts of the chimneys accounted fo r as much as 48 per cent of the entire chimney stonework. The examination has shown th a t the materials used fo r the Castle's elevations included limestone, dolomite and sandstone, while Polish, Italian, French, Belgian and Greek marble was employed inside the structure. Impaired parts as well as missing elements have been made up by the PKZ conservators, who used to this end o r ig inal or similar materials of home and foreign origin. Substitute materials, also used nowadays, have been proposed by geological institutes a fte r carrying out detailed comparative studies.
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