The ceremonial hall at the Central Cemetery in Brno has reopened after a year of renovations

Brno – The Hall of Ceremony at the Central Cemetery in Brno opened to the public today after reconstruction. The reconstruction took a year and included structural stabilization of the building, new electrical and gas installations, cleaning of the building's facade, renovation of floors, painting, as well as refurbishment of doors and lighting. According to Alena Říhová, the director of the Cemetery Administration of the City of Brno, a new feature is the data projector that allows for the projection of photographs or videos from the life of the deceased during the final farewell, as well as a robotic catafalque, which is the first of its kind in the Czech Republic.

"The design of the catafalque itself has returned to its original state, as designed by architects Bohuslav Fuchs and Josef Polášek. The hydraulics in the basement, which allows the nearly two-ton catafalque to be raised up to a height of 2.3 meters, have been replaced. The catafalque is robotic, navigated using a magnetic black tape on the floor, and it automatically arrives and departs. It is controlled remotely," described Říhová.

The complete reconstruction of the monument-protected building cost 66.3 million crowns excluding VAT and was overseen by heritage protectors. The Hall of Ceremony serves for final farewells six days a week, with five to eight ceremonies taking place daily. The functionalist building, designed by architects Fuchs and Polášek, was completed in 1926.

The Central Cemetery in Brno is celebrating 140 years since its establishment this year and is the largest cemetery in the Czech Republic.