Concluding Part
@kizhi
2012
The year 2012 was very significant for the restoration of the Church of the Transfiguration. A part of the monument was removed, restored and brought back to the original place for the first time in its history. Today's restorers had to accept the fact that ancestors didn't have the academic knowledge of building, they could make some mistakes, and, the restored part was set on a firm foundation. That was the completion of 1st and the beginning of the 2 stage of the restoration.
The restoration continues in line with the project and its main concept of the site visibility for tourists except for the part being restored in the Restoration Complex. The project is not only general ideas and decisions, it implies the preservation of each element just as well.
This decision was approved by ICOMOS/UNESCO experts and Russian restorers not once. It is necessary to mention that work of museum restorers and contractors in 2012 was not so intensively controlled and scrutinized, which proves that previously developed methods and technologies are being applied correctly. The next mission of ICOMOS/UNESCO experts will take place in 2013.
A large scope of restoration work was completed within the reporting period. This is the first time when work started in January and was going on the whole year without breaks. Such a rate of work as well as organization of all the aspects, starting from financing and up to the formal acceptance, is obviously the achievement of year 2012. There are no reasons to think that restoration will slow down or get worse in the future. The most urgent questions are settled, namely the working technology has been perfected, the methods of logs restoration and repair are known, and the financing is steady.
The Ministry of Culture of RF and UNESCO give a great help to the restoration of the Church of the Transfiguration by steady financing, settling organizational and technical issues, moral support etc.
In the end of 2012, it is safe to say that the organizational system has been worked through and functions effectively, thus more attention can be focused on technical issues of restoration that arise in workflow. The rate of work has reached its maximum, and more hands are needed to increase it. This is a difficult task to achieve in the conditions of Kizhi Island. At present, we may suppose that restoration will be completed in 5 years in case the rate of work stays the same.
