Stan zachowania wapienia pińczowskiego zastosowanego w dekoracyjnych elementach architektonicznych kościoła Mariackiego w Krakowie
The State of the Preservation of Pińczów Limestone Applied in Decorative Architectonic Elements of the Church of the Holy Virgin Mary in Cracow

Summary/Abstract: The polluted atmosphere of Cracow enables us to observe an accelerated rate of devastation incurred to historical limestone buildings, often of unique rank. Those objects, subjected to the direct impact of external factors, suffer from assorted degrees of damage. The study concerns select fleurons, at present undergoing conservation, made of Pińczów limestone and situated on the external elevation of the church of the Holy Virgin Mary. The destruction of the examined decorative limestone elements occurred both in the surface sphere, where new minerals crystallised, creating an inner accretion, and in the inner sphere, where assorted types of surface build up came into being. The outer build up and remnants of sulfates should be removed from the porous area by means of cleansing. Here, it is recommended for the stone to be structurally reinforced by impregnants of considerable penetration properties, which, additionally, do not produce layers sealing the surface. The missing fragments of the fleurons should be supplemented with mineral masses specially designed for the reconstruction of different variants of Pińczów limestone. This undertaking will result in highly effective revalorisation, since such masses emulate the features of limestone and, at the same time, offer extensive opportunities for their regulation depending on the expectations of the recipient.

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