Prague Castle’s Renaissance jewel Belvedere undergoing historic renovation

Prague Castle’s Renaissance jewel, the Royal Summer Palace of Queen Anne, better known as the Belvedere, is closing to the public for nearly two years as a major restoration project begins. The Prague Castle Administration has launched the extensive renovation at an estimated cost of around 100 million Czech crowns, marking one of the most significant conservation efforts at the Castle complex in recent years.

The elegant Renaissance structure, with its arcaded façade, distinctive copper roof shaped like an inverted ship’s hull, and beautifully tended gardens attracts thousands of visitors every summer.

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Now, Prague Castle Administration is gradually handing the building over to the construction company responsible for restoring its original appearance and preserving its historic value.

Belvedere|Photo: Filip Jandourek, Czech Radio

The restoration will address both structural and aesthetic issues. The southern part of the building requires reinforcement, while work will also focus on façades, arcades, balustrades, cornices, windows, floors, ceilings and interior partitions.

Conservation experts say the renovation has already revealed important historical details hidden beneath past alterations. Restoration probes uncovered original Renaissance combed plasterwork that will now be partially restored. Specialists will also remove 20th-century paint coatings from the vaulted ceiling beneath the roof in an effort to recover the building’s earlier appearance.

Belvedere|Photo: Jolana Nováková, Czech Radio

Barbora Feret, from Prague Castle Administration, highlighted the rediscovery of the original colour scheme inside the palace.

“We know the summer palace and its lower rooms mainly as white interiors, but surveys uncovered original Renaissance plasterwork that we will now restore. We will also restore the original colouring of the ceiling.”

Prague Castle officials say that once the renovation is over, the building’s historical purpose will remain unchanged. After reopening, the Belvedere is expected to continue hosting smaller cultural events, exhibitions and ceremonial gatherings.

Royal Summer Palace of Queen Anne|Photo: Michal Brezanik, CC BY-SA 4.0

Pavel Vyhnánek, director of the Prague Castle Administration, says the Royal Summer Palace is one of the purest examples of Italian Renaissance architecture located outside of Italy and must be preserved accordingly.

Pavel Vyhnánek|Photo: Klára Škodová, Czech Radio

“We want to give it maximum care and protection which means avoiding projects and operations that would require a change of temperature, humidity and in general conditions that could place excessive strain on the historic structure.”

The reconstruction, awarded to a Czech construction company, is expected to cost around 100 million crowns. Final costs, however, may still change as the restoration progresses in the event of hidden structural problems that sometimes only emerge during construction work. The reconstruction is expected to continue until spring 2028.

A summer palace for a queen who did not live to see it finished

The story of the Belvedere stretches back nearly five centuries. Construction began in the 1530s when Ferdinand I commissioned the summer palace for his wife, Anne of Bohemia and Hungary. Italian architect Paolo della Stella created the original design, later expanded by Bonifác Wohlmut, who added the upper floor and the palace’s iconic roofline.

Ferdinand I and Anne of Bohemia and Hungary|Photo: akg-images / Profimedia

Work was interrupted after the devastating fire of St. Vitus Cathedral in 1541, delaying completion until 1563. Anne herself never saw the finished building. She died in 1547 at the age of 43 after giving birth to her fifteenth child.

Emperor Rudolf II and the astronomer Tycho Brahe|Photo: Profimedia

Over the centuries, the Belvedere served many purposes — from a an observatory for the royal astronomer Tycho Brahe during the rule of Rudolf II to  a military base for Swedish soldiers in the Thirty Years War. In the 1950s, the palace was restored by a Czech architect Pavel Janák and it served as an exhibition hall. It became a National Cultural Monument in 1962. Since then, the building has provided space for exhibitions of fine and applied arts.

The lower part of the palace includes the ground floor with an arcade gallery around the whole building. On the upper floor are residential areas, a dance hall, and a gallery. There is also a singing fountain from 1654 located in front of the Summer Palace.

Photo: Kristýna Maková, Czech Radio