The mural paintings in Karlštejn castle in the light of the restoration effects

The mural paintings in Karlštejn castle in the light of the restoration effects This thesis focuses on the mural paintings located in Karlštejn castle. These mural paintings form a complex iconography of the entire castle, which weaves together all the sacred spaces of the castle, culminating in the Chapel in the Great Tower. The thesis deals with the mural paintings situated in two chapels in the first floor of the Imperial palace, so-called the Hall of Ancestors, where the genealogy of Charles IV. originally decorated this hall, the Church of the Virgin Mary and the Chapel of Saint Catherine inside the Marian Tower, on the walls of the staircase and in the Chapel of the Holy Cross, inside the Great Tower, not only in the light of the restoration effects, which may have affected and influenced the original appearance. Tracking of the origin of the re- paintings, followed by an iconographical analysis, draws from the restoration reports and archives connected with the last major reconstruction of the castle, which was led from Vienna by architects Fridrich Schmidt and Josef Mocker. I analyse their iconography and authorship, and evaluate the restoration efforts carried out in the last centuries. Key words: Middle Ages, mural paintings, 14th century, Karlštejn castle, Chapel of the Holly Cross, Master..