Course detail

Reconstruction and Renovation of Historical Buildings

FAST-NHB053Acad. year: 2025/2026

Cultural monuments and all the older or heritage buildings need to be renovated in a specific way. It is necessary to acquaint with historical building technology and used means creating their construction, architecture and embellishment. The course content is aimed right at this so that students can familiarize with traditional technologies, construction and craft industry. Last but not least they also learn how to deal with employees of conservation institutes.

Language of instruction

Czech, English

Number of ECTS credits

5

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Guarantor

Ing. Lubor Kalousek, Ph.D.

Department

Institute of Building Structures (PST)

Offered to foreign students

Of all faculties

Entry knowledge

Basic knowledge of constructions of vertical and horizontal building parts; roof trusses and roof structures; interior finishing works; basics of the history of architecture; building structural and historical survey; building chemistry and physics; drawing of building structures and their changes.

Rules for evaluation and completion of the course

Successful passing of the course requires attendance, getting credit by submitting and presenting of the semestral project and passing an exam.


Extent and forms are specified by guarantor’s regulation updated for every academic year.

Aims

Principles of care for architectural monuments and historic buildings. Development of building structures and architecture. Historical building structures, technology of exterior and interior decoration, surface finishes, decorative elements, painting techniques, vaults.  The legal requirements on the protection of cultural heritage in the Czech Republic.


The graduate obtains fundamental knowledge about the construction and project design process of building rehabilitation and reconstruction of historical buildings. The graduate is able to:
– describe the history of buildings and architectural styles in the Czech Republic;
– design the reconstruction of particular structures of historical buildings and building monuments;
– conduct the detailed building survey: basic structural and static survey, moisture survey and bio-corrosion evaluation, including a preliminary assessment;
– conduct the fundamental architectural analysis of the building;
– conduct the fundamental historical survey.

Study aids

Not applicable.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

BENEŠ, Petr. Studijní opora pro předmět Sanace a adaptace budov, VUT v Brně, FAST, 2007. (CS)
MAKÝŠ, Oto. Technologie renovace budov. Bratislava: Vydavatelství Jaga group, s.r.o., 2004. ISBN 80-8076-006-3. (CS)
PEK, Tomáš. Stavební památky – Specifika přípravy a financování jejich obnovy, údržby a provozu, 1. vyd., Praha: Wolters Kluwer ČR, 2009, ISBN: 978-80-7357-462. (CS)
ŠKABRADA, Jiří. Konstrukce historických staveb, Praha: Argo, 2007, ISBN 80-7203-548-7. (CS)
ŠTORM, Břetislav. Základy péče o stavební památky. Praha: NPÚ, 2007, ISBN 978-80-87104-13-2. (CS)
VLČEK, Milan. Studijní opora pro předmět CH 55 – Obnova památek, VUT v Brně, FAST, 2009. (CS)

Recommended reading

GIRSA, Václav, HOLEČEK, Josef, JERIE, Pavel, MICHOINOVÁ, Dagmar. Předprojektová příprava a projektová dokumentace v procesu péče o stavební památky. Praha: NPÚ. 2004. ISBN 80-86234-36-3. (CS)
HOLEČEK, Josef, GIRSA, Václav a kol. Projektování obnovy stavebních památek. Praha: NPÚ. 2008. ISBN 978-80-87104-34-7. (CS)
HOŠEK, Jiří, LOSOS, Ludvík. Historické omítky – průzkumy, sanace, typologie. Praha: Grada Publishing, a.s. 2007, 978-80-247-1395-3 (CS)
LOSOS, Ludvík, GAVENDA, Miloš. Štukatérství. Praha: Grada Publishing, a.s. 2010, ISBN 978-80-247-2175-0 (CS)
MARSHALL, Duncan, WORTHING, Derek, HEATH, Roger, DANN, Nigel. Understanding Housing Defects, London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Ltd, 2013. ISBN 9780080971124 (EN)
PAVLÍK, Milan a kol. Regenerace historických budov, sídel a krajiny, ochrana památek, Praha: ČVUT , 1998, ISBN:80-01-01797-4 (CS)

Classification of course in study plans

  • Programme NPA-SIS Master's 2 year of study, winter semester, compulsory
  • Programme NPC-SIS Master's 2 year of study, winter semester, compulsory-optional
  • Programme NPC-SIS Master's 2 year of study, winter semester, compulsory

  • Programme CZV1-AKR Lifelong learning

    specialization PNM , 1 year of study, winter semester, compulsory-optional

Type of course unit

 

Lecture

26 hod., optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

Ing. Jana Krupicová, Ph.D.
Ing. Lubor Kalousek, Ph.D.
Ing. Jan Müller, Ph.D.

Syllabus

  • 1. Introduction to the subject; monument care: development and contemporary legal requirements on the protection of cultural heritage in the Czech Republic; methods of protection and presentation of building monuments; surveys and diagnostics of historical buildings.
  • 2. Architectural styles in the territory of the Czech Republic.
  • 3. Historical development of building structures in the territory of the Czech Republic.
  • 4. Approaches to the conservation and interventions in individual building elements and structures of historic buildings and building monuments.
  • 5. Historical building technologies: stonemasonry; plastering of historic buildings; gypsum plasters and false vaults; stucco work.
  • 6. Historical building technologies: painting techniques in historical eras; fresco paintings; sgraffito decoration; stuccolustro.
  • 7. Historical building technologies: mosaic; wallpapers; gilding, patination, polychrome.
  • 8. Vaults: fundamental overview, building technologies, faults and repairs of vaults; exam instructions.

Exercise

26 hod., compulsory

Teacher / Lecturer

Ing. Jana Krupicová, Ph.D.
Ing. Lubor Kalousek, Ph.D.
Ing. Jan Müller, Ph.D.

Syllabus

  • 1. Introduction to practice classes; credit granting conditions; assignment of input documents for semestral work.
  • 2. Individual consultation of the assignment and field work: preliminary survey, measurement of current state, photodocumentation, collection of the necessary information.
  • 3. Historical survey of the given building: work with archive and literary sources.
  • 4. Architectural analysis of the building and art history review: architectural style and detail; monument evaluation of the building.
  • 5. Building survey: basic structural and static survey, moisture survey and bio-corrosion evaluation, including a preliminary assessment of the current state.
  • 6. Design of the refurbishment of particular structures: processing the problems of reconstruction, rehabilitation or renovation procedures of selected building defects and failures (special technological procedures for the restoration of monuments are preferred).
  • 7. Individual consultation; presentation of work results.
  • 8. Submission of semestral work; credits.