Refurbishing Churches To Their Past Magnificence And Elegance

By Author: Jo Alelsto
Total Articles: 405
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If you are a history or an architecture nut, one of the places in your must-see list when visiting a new place would be a stopover at the local church or the old cathedral.
Churches are good examples of architecture, its history and consequent evolution and innovation in designs and structure. There are many different architectural designs spanning the two thousand years of history of the Christian faith.

These can range from the medieval churches of Europe, the basilicas of Eastern Orthodoxy such as St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, the Baroque and Rococo architecture of the Renaissance, as the cities grow and expand, it gave rise to the Gothic design in churches, and after the Second World War, a new definitive style on church architecture came to be, simplicity and practicality.

Did you know that the oldest Christian church was the one discovered in a cave in Jordan under the olden St. Georgeous church? Archeologists believed that the church was both a place of worship and a dwelling by the early Christians who fled persecution from Jerusalem following the death of Jesus. Although the findings have yet ...
... to be tested for authenticity, this discovery is certainly exciting for biblical scholars as well as architecture enthusiasts.

To return an ancient church back to its former beauty and elegance, it would take a team of experts and a lot of money. Church restoration and repair is an art and a science. It is an art because you need to be an artist to restore a masterpiece of art, reminiscent of its previous magnificence and splendor. It is a science because you need to study and understand the factors which can help you in your task of restoration.

You need experts on plasters, carpentry, decorative paintings and murals, stained glass, metal works, and roofing. Woodworks, paintings and murals, marble and metal works as well as the restoration of church furniture require skills and expertise than the usual. You can't just ask anyone to do repairs. Church restoration is a delicate and meticulous enterprise which should involve individuals who know their job and the history of architecture. Sometimes, it also helps to have a little history lesson for the team to better acquaint them of the tasks as well as the expected output.

Aside from a team of experts who can do their job, you also need to have a team who can accurately assess the damages caused by fire, flood, earthquake or the passage of time. By arriving at an estimate of the damage, you can prioritize what should be done first and be able to evaluate how much you would need for the repairs and restoration.

Historic buildings and churches are our precious connection to the past and are some of the most evocative artifacts of our culture and its masters. The restoration of the Sistine Chapel is most likely one of the most popular and controversial church restoration projects. It was launched in 1984 and took 12 years to finish as well as used up millions of dollars in the effort. The Vatican commissioned the expertise of the world's best and finest artists, art historians, and restorers to bring back the lost grandeur of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. A marked difference from the before and after photographs is readily observed even by the untrained eyes of a layman.

Church restoration goes beyond just cleaning up the dust and repairing minor and major damages. It is also an effort to restore the artists' masterpieces and reinstate the wonder in all those who step into the church. It is not an easy job but one which is rewarding in more ways than one could imagine.
Jo is an author and publisher for ‘EBL Group Limited' (http://www.eblgroup.co.uk), a family run and reputable home and commercial builders stationed in Runcorn Cheshire. If you are looking for Runcorn builders who are professionals in church repair and restoration due to storm, flood, fire, or the passage of time or if you have house and industrial buildings expansion needs then you ought to take a look at EBL Group.