The Prague Astronomical Clock is expected to be restarted after repairs in June 2018

Prague - The Prague astronomical clock is expected to be restarted in June 2018 after repairs that will begin next year. The repair, costing more than 46 million crowns, will involve the entire tower of the Old Town Hall, and tourists will not be allowed on the gallery. This information was announced today at a meeting of the council committee for culture, heritage care, and tourism. The tower was last renovated in the 1980s. The Old Town Hall in the historical center of the city is among the most visited tourist sites in the metropolis.

The repairs will begin in the spring of next year, but the clock will not be out of service the entire time, only for a few months. During the repairs, the city intends to replace the clock at least with video mapping on scaffolding or another similar method, said Iveta Pekárková, the director of the service department, at the committee meeting.

Ninety percent of the work will be on the exterior of the tower, and the chapel's oriel and the gallery will also be renovated. The reconstruction will not limit access to the interior spaces. The exact amount for the repairs will only be known after the outcome of the tender. According to the documentation, however, the offered price should not exceed approximately 46.6 million CZK excluding VAT.

The town hall tower is visited by 700,000 people annually. Revenue from entrance fees constitutes a significant part of the budget for Prague City Tourism's information service. "Next year, it will receive half of the collected accommodation fees in hotels. It will be about 125 million," explained councilor Jan Wolf (KDU-ČSL/Trojkoalice).

The Old Town Hall in Prague was founded in 1338. It consists of a complex of several houses. In the 20th century, several architectural competitions were announced for the reconstruction and completion of the town hall. Most aimed to fill the space left by the demolished neo-Gothic wing. All ended either without winners or the winning proposals were never realized.