Expert examination of the historical beam ceiling in the Rómer's House in Bratislava. (source: Courtesy of the National Trust)
As soon as the non-profit organisation National Trust took over the administration of the historic Rómer’s House in the centre of Bratislava from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in 2014 in order to turn the house into its headquarters, they started organising volunteer works so they could start using it as soon as possible. Volunteers discovered a historical wooden ceiling under plaster from the 1970s in a ground-floor room.
“We did not have any idea what era it dated back to; nevertheless we immediately knew that it was a rarity,” Michaela Kubíková, director of the National Trust, told The Slovak Spectator. Kubíková is especially known as the organiser of the popular annual event the Weekend of Open Parks and Gardens
Conservationists and restorers are using remnants of white lime paint to analyse the baroque ceiling in the birth house of Floriš Rómer, a native of Bratislava and the founder of modern archaeology in historical Hungary. The plan of the National Trust is to return the ceiling to its original beauty by the end of this year and use the house for public activities.
The house has mostly retained its Renaissance look, but has undergone several reconstructions throughout its existence.
Wooden ceiling structures are a rarity in every country due to their historical, aesthetic and artistic values. Each one represents unique proof of how our ancestors lived, noted Kubíková.
“This 18th century wooden beam ceiling shows not only how the population of Bratislava lived in that time, but also the traditional building skills of our old masters,” said Kubíková.
