Historic crystal chandelier from Hejnice church undergoes restoration in Kamenický Šenov

A massive crystal chandelier from the northern Bohemian town of Hejnice, one of the largest of its kind in Czechia, is undergoing restoration. The historic piece hung in the local church for 170 years and is now being repaired in Kamenický Šenov, the town where it was originally made.

The picturesque town of Hejnice lies at the foothills of the Jizera Mountains in the Liberec Region. It is best known for its Baroque Church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary, an important pilgrimage site that attracts visitors from across the region.

One of the church’s most striking features is a monumental crystal chandelier hanging in the main nave. Measuring around five metres in height and three metres in width, and weighing roughly half a tonne, it is one of the largest church chandeliers in the country.

Cleaning of the chandelier|Photo: Jiří Jelínek, Czech Radio

The chandelier was donated to the church in the 19th century by glass magnate Josef Riedel, who was baptised there. It was last restored in 1929, when its original wax candles were replaced with electric bulbs. Today, however, the wiring no longer meets modern safety standards, making a full renovation necessary.

The restoration is being carried out by Preciosa Lighting in Kamenický Šenov, a town known for its long tradition of chandelier production dating back to the early 18th century. Before the chandelier could be transported there, specialists first dismantled the massive structure piece by piece inside the church. Each of the roughly ten thousand crystal elements was carefully labelled and packed into protective crates.

Photo: Jan Heinzl, Hejnice monastery

At the workshop, every piece undergoes meticulous cleaning, explains Tomáš Vávra, head of the restoration workshop.

“The ornaments are rinsed in soapy water. Then we use a special spray and a flannel cloth to clean each ornament by hand. Just the refurbishment of these hanging parts will take 200 hours of work.”

Some missing crystal elements also have to be recreated. According to Vávra, these include, for example, a glass bell that formed part of a larger pendant, and a glass canopy that connected two supporting pipes to the ceiling.

Vávra says the company has experience restoring historic lighting fixtures across the country.

“We’ve already worked on several churches. We regularly refurbish lighting fixtures at Prague Castle, at Clam-Gallas Palace, and we also restored the Liebieg Palace in Liberec. Our most recent refurbishment was a chandelier in the church in Horní Libchava, which was very similar, just four times smaller.”

Despite its age, the chandelier is in remarkably good condition, he adds.

“It’s really well preserved. You can see it was made from high-quality materials. Often chandeliers fall apart in our hands when we restore them. This one really holds together.”

As part of the overhaul, the sockets and the main power cable will be replaced, although the chandelier will continue to use traditional light bulbs.

If everything goes according to plan, the restored and cleaned chandelier should return to Hejnice before Easter.