St Anthony's Church in Lviv has been a Franciscan monastic shrine since the 18th century.

In 2019. POLONIKA Institute has embarked on the conservation of the monumental staircase with the statue of Immaculata, which precedes the entrance to the church. Conservation work on the staircase in front of St Anthony's Church in Lviv and the 18th-century sculpture adorning it, chiseled by Sebastian Fesinger, was completed in 2020. Work continues in subsequent years.

Work carried out in 2022

In October 2023, the conservation restoration project of the retaining wall and bell tower at St Anthony's Church in Lviv, which lasted almost two years, was successfully completed. Work continued despite the difficulties of the pandemic and Russian aggression against Ukraine.

The retaining wall was in a poor state of repair, especially on the side of Zankowicka Street. It threatened the safety of pavement users and the stability of the slope. The entire wall was painted with contemporary grey paint, under which the structural destruction of the stone blocks was progressing. Their delamination and spalling were visible. Some of the damaged stone blocks were replenished with brick.

As part of the works, the outer face of the wall and the brick and plaster fence located on it were demolished. A reinforced concrete mantle was poured to block the slope slip. The outer face of the wall was reconstructed with the maximum use of historic stone blocks, and, as with the fence, efforts were made to reconstruct it with the original bricks. A proper drainage system was made for the area between the wall and the church walls.

As part of the restoration of the bell tower, the rustication visible in pre-war photographs, which had been removed as part of one of the later renovations, was restored.

The work was carried out by ZKR sp. z o.o. under the direction of Paweł Jędrzejczyk.

Work carried out in 2022.

The work, started in 2021, continues despite the hostilities in Ukraine.

Old, cracked and technologically inappropriate plasterwork was removed from the belfry and new plasterwork with rustication reconstructed on the basis of archival photographs was installed. During the removal of the plaster, a stone cornice was discovered, which was cleaned and refitted with splints.

The retaining wall was dismantled and the slope is being reinforced with a reinforced concrete wall. The stone blocks forming the wall have been transported to the conservation studio, where they are being cleaned, strengthened and will be used to the maximum extent possible to face the wall.

The plastered brick fence on the Zankowicka Street side was dismantled, the bricks cleaned and prepared for the re-bricking of the fence.

Work on the bell tower and most of the wall was completed. Due to the war effort, the project has been extended, with completion scheduled for the end of June 2023.

Contractor: ZKR sp. z o.o.

Work carried out in 2021.

Built of limestone, the wall is in a catastrophic state of repair and threatens the safety of pavement users and also the stability of the slope. Delamination and detachment of the stone blocks is evident. The progressive structural deterioration of the stone blocks is visible under the layer of contemporary grey paint. Due to the irreversible loss of some of the authentic elements of the wall, large parts of the wall will need to be reconstructed. On the retaining wall on the side of Lychakivska Street there is a classicist bell tower, in the form of a three-bay triumphal arch. It is well preserved and presents a very high degree of authenticity and integrity. Research has uncovered traces of original plaster allowing its original colour scheme to be determined.

The aim of the works initiated is to prevent the threat of destruction or significant damage to the historic surroundings of the church. The planned activities will protect the stone structures from further degradation, strengthen their structure and maintain their existing character.

The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of November 2022. Work will be carried out on the dismantling of the contemporary brickwork, structural work necessary to strengthen the masonry, conservation work on the preserved parts of the masonry, stone restoration and disinfection. The belfry will receive new plasterwork in accordance with the original colours and the stone tondo with the statue of St Anthony will be cleaned.

Executor: ZKR Sp. z o.o.

Works carried out in 2020.

During the construction work, protection of the object against vibrations coming from the busy street, which caused destabilisation of the substructure, was carried out. Conservation of the preserved components was carried out. The fragments that were not suitable for reassembly were faithfully reconstructed. A new staircase substructure was made. The 18th-century statue of Immaculata by Sebastian Fesinger was also conserved.

Executor: ZKR Sp. z o.o.

Works carried out in 2019.

The stone elements of the staircase were dismantled and transported to the studio for conservation treatment. As the staircase substructure turned out to be in a worse technical condition than originally anticipated, a design for a new reinforced concrete structure was also carried out. Material was purchased to make and complete the stone facing of the stairs.

Executor: ZKR Sp. z o.o.

Work carried out between 2019 and 2023 as part of the Polonica Institute's strategic programme "Protection of Polish cultural heritage abroad"