DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.21832#0063
Plaster Casts of the Works of Art
The collection of documentary plaster casts is systematically developed. Any time
when a scaffolding is built along a part of the Cathedral to perform conservation
works, there is an exceptional opportunity to make a copy of normally inaccessible
original sculptures (from the 14th, 15th or 19th centuries). The most demanding works
included making forms for casts of the gargoyles and large consoles from the Crown
Chamber.
The set of casts, which has been significantly extended in recent years, represents
a unique collection that documents high-quality sculptures whose originals are
difficult to access or even photograph and therefore are almost unknown. Without
information on these casts, it is difficult successfully to evaluate Peter Parler's overall
vision of the decoration of the Cathedral. In the future, it would be useful to consider
a long-tern exhibition of the collection or at least selected parts of it. The casts have
the advantage that their observer is not distracted by the colour effects on the surface
of the originals and can fully concentrate on the evaluation of their shape.
A specialised part of the collection consists of casts of stonemasons' marks, which
have been acquired systematically since 2000. It is interesting that beforehand, espe-
cially in the period of the Union, when practically all parts of the building were
accessible, such casts were not made, although the marks from the Old Royal Palace
were cast in plaster as early as in the 1920s and 1930s during the restoration works
led by Karel Fiala. Considering the large number of marks at the Cathedral, only
selected samples are cast; all marks that are found are documented by drawings on
a scale of 1:1.
62
The collection of documentary plaster casts is systematically developed. Any time
when a scaffolding is built along a part of the Cathedral to perform conservation
works, there is an exceptional opportunity to make a copy of normally inaccessible
original sculptures (from the 14th, 15th or 19th centuries). The most demanding works
included making forms for casts of the gargoyles and large consoles from the Crown
Chamber.
The set of casts, which has been significantly extended in recent years, represents
a unique collection that documents high-quality sculptures whose originals are
difficult to access or even photograph and therefore are almost unknown. Without
information on these casts, it is difficult successfully to evaluate Peter Parler's overall
vision of the decoration of the Cathedral. In the future, it would be useful to consider
a long-tern exhibition of the collection or at least selected parts of it. The casts have
the advantage that their observer is not distracted by the colour effects on the surface
of the originals and can fully concentrate on the evaluation of their shape.
A specialised part of the collection consists of casts of stonemasons' marks, which
have been acquired systematically since 2000. It is interesting that beforehand, espe-
cially in the period of the Union, when practically all parts of the building were
accessible, such casts were not made, although the marks from the Old Royal Palace
were cast in plaster as early as in the 1920s and 1930s during the restoration works
led by Karel Fiala. Considering the large number of marks at the Cathedral, only
selected samples are cast; all marks that are found are documented by drawings on
a scale of 1:1.
62