In the forest in Prostřední Bečva, logging has begun for the restoration of Libušín

Prostřední Bečva - In the state forests in Prostřední Bečva in the Vsetín area, logging began today for wood that will be used to restore the burned-down Libušín at Pustevny. Approximately 360 cubic meters of fir and spruce logs will be donated by Lesy ČR to the Wallachian Open-Air Museum, which manages Libušín. It is quality and selected wood, said the museum director Jindřich Ondruš to reporters today.

"Libušín is a log structure and wood as a building material is the essence of this building. We are getting wood from roughly the place where logging took place when Libušín was built. We also chose the time when we would log, based on the wisdom of our ancestors. Yesterday was a super full moon, we start from the full moon on the phase of the waning Moon, when according to ancient wisdom, wood has the best quality and is best usable as a building material," Ondruš stated.

The wood is being logged at an altitude of about 700 meters above sea level. The foresters selected the highest quality timber, free from rot, insect damage, or wood-destroying fungi. The wood in several locations had been identified earlier. "In the selection process, we had to ensure that we met the technical parameters, especially the diameter of the wood and also the length. If all the log elements are added together, according to the project they should measure (in length) over 3000 meters," said Jaromír Válek from the Forest Management Rožnov pod Radhoštěm.

The logging and transportation of the wood is provided free of charge by the Military Forests and Farms of the Czech Republic, which uses horses as well as modern technology. "The wood will be further transferred at an accessible location onto transport equipment. It will then be transported to the technical facilities of the contractor in Bystřička, which is 40 kilometers away from Libušín," announced the production deputy of the Military Forests and Farms, Libor Strakoš. Logging will continue until around mid-December.

The forest where the logging will take place is managed by Lesy ČR. "From the beginning, it was clear to us that we wanted to set an example in our approach to the restoration of the destroyed Libušín. Therefore, we identified suitable stands to provide timber corresponding to the project requirements. Subsequently, we waited for a signal from the organizers of the competition for the restoration of Libušín, so we could start the actual logging," stated the general director of the company, Daniel Szórád. According to him, the value of the wood, logging, and all related works is about one million crowns.

Libušín, which burned down two years ago, was built in the Beskydy mountains in 1899 according to the design of architect Dušan Jurkovič. It served as a restaurant in a location sought after by tourists and skiers. The museum decided after the fire to conduct a scientific reconstruction of the building; the restoration began this summer and should be completed within three years, costing nearly 80 million crowns.

Experts have already demolished the burned and damaged parts. At the beginning of the work, they announced that they would try to preserve as many original parts as possible, such as the remnants of plaster with sgraffito decoration. A new platform for the building is completed. "The wood will be transported to the storage areas, where it will rest for a while, then it will be hewn and processed, and prepared for the actual construction. Construction will begin in the spring, weather permitting," Ondruš told ČTK.