Conservation and Museological Aspect of Trakošćan Castle

Čilaš, Karla. (2018). Conservation and Museological Aspect of Trakošćan Castle. Diploma Thesis. Filozofski fakultet u Zagrebu, Department of Art History
Department of Information Science. [mentor Jurić, Zlatko and Vujić, Žarka].

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Abstract

The history of Trakošćan Castle, located in northwestern Croatia, dates back to the 13th century. By the 17th century it changed the owners and then came to the possession of the Drašković family until the end of the World War II. At first it was a Romanesque fort, and larger upgrades (tower, defence walls) were built in the 16th century. By the 19th century it was systematically upgraded, and in the middle of the 19th century a great reconstruction of Trakošćan (1844-1862) begins, when Trakosćan receives today's layout, which is considered the first Croatian restoration. The idea was to reconstruct the defense system with the towers and the access road, and further beautify the castle by adding towers, crowns, and pointed- arch windows. The exterior has been restored in the Neo-Gothic style, while in the interior there are inconsistencies as some parts were rebuilt shortly after the renovation. There has been additional construction interventions (1862-1869) when a large terrace between the southern and western towers was built, and between 1875 and 1897 a part of the ground floor room was re-converted and additional space above the entrance space was built. In the 19th century, major changes took place in the protection of monuments in Europe, creating two directions due to the Romanticism Movement. The first is a restoration route that advocates purity of one style and the other is conservation route, which requires exclusive preservation without restoration.. Until the Second World War in Trakošćan there is no major intervention, and then Drašković family left the castle. After the war, Trakošćan became a state-owned property, and since 1953, conservation and restoration works took place there under supervision of Zdenka Munk. At the same time Trakošćan castle became a museum. Eight showrooms were set up, and due to the lack of resources, further works were reduced to maintenance until the 80s of the 20th century when systematic consolidation and restoration began, extending even during the Homeland War. In 2001, conservation and restoration researches began on all floors of the Castle, on the basis of which the works were carried out. The basis for the new museological concept of the permanent exhibition of the Museum was formed, presenting the noble life of the Drašković family. Most of the rooms are decorated in in ambiance style, and new exhibition rooms are opened with museology themes related to the history and activity of the Drašković family and a new exhibition space for the weapons collection was arranged. Under the direction of the Museum today there is a park-forest with lake and a garden. Nevertheless, in the spirit of new museological tendencies, it would be necessary to include all the social strata that participated in the former court life in the interpretation of the Castle. This could be done by using the interpretative method of revived history. It is also necessary to consider the introduction of multimedia content. Trakošćan is an excellent tourist resource, and further investments are needed to maximize its potential.

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