PHOTOS: The iconic Buda Palace will be renewed, it will be astonishing
The renovation of Hungary’s and Budapest’s emblematic Buda Palace, the seat of the Hungarian Monarchs, has started recently. Furthermore, Várkapitányság, the state-owned company operating the Buda Palace, shared some breathtaking visuals of how the palace will look when the renovation work is completed.
According to pestbuda.hu, the Neo-Baroque palace was built between 1890 and 1905 by extending the previous palace building. However, the American air raids and the Soviet siege of Budapest in 1944-45 destroyed it almost entirely. After the war, the Communist regime rebuilt a simplified, cheaper version of the pre-WWII buildings serving the seat of the governor of Hungary, Miklós Horthy, between 1920 and 1944.
The Várkapitányság, a state-owned company responsible for managing and rebuilding the Buda Castle district, shared the visuals of the renewed Buda Palace. We have to say that the building will look astonishing when completed. Company officials announced the start of the reconstruction on 19 December, at a press conference. The work began with the scaffolding of the palace’s north wing.
Krisztina Sikota, the deputy CEO responsible for tourism, culture and communications at the Várkapitányság, said that the palace wing near the Szent György Square would be the reception building. From there, visitors may reach the marvellous banquet halls running parallel to the River Danube.
Furthermore, they will rebuild the Ball Hall, the buffet gallery, the Habsburg Hall and the throne room. The Neo-Rococo style throne room will be re-established following its original outlook.
Várkapitányság said the reconstruction work started after a long preparatory phase. Years ago, they restored Saint Stephen Hall and experts carried out the entire technical, architectural, artistic and functional measurement of the palace. As a result, now they can restore the buildings entirely, Mrs Sikota said.
She added that the planning had several challenges. They used photos and other documents for the reconstruction. However, Robert Gutowski, the leading architect of the reconstruction, highlighted that the new building would have to meet all the technical requirements of the modern era. Therefore, they will use 21st-century technologies and quality but re-establish the 1905 grandeur and character.
In the visitor’s centre, everybody can check out the visuals of the renewed Buda Palace. There is even a 3D miniature. Here are some photos:
Mr Gutowski said that there were more than 100,000 documents supporting the experts’ views and findings. Mrs Sikota said they would like to recreate the buildings of the Buda Castle with the help of the National Hauszmann Program. Furthermore, they would like to fill them with colourful programmes. For example, in the visitor’s centre, people will not only be able to get information about the reconstruction work, but they may also buy tickets to the programmes.
They added that the number of visitors attending the programmes of the Buda Castle reached pre-pandemic levels. For instance, the number of guests in Saint Stephen Hall was 110,000 in the last 18 months. That is why they plan to increase service quality. They created additional toilets, parks, walkways, elevators and drinking wells.
In 2023, construction work will continue in DÃsz Square (near the Matthias Church) and Szent György Square. She added that projects like rebuilding the Red Cross headquarters, the Headquarters of Hungarian Defense Forces, and Archduke Joseph’s Palace showed adequate progress.
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Source: pestbuda.hu