A $1.4 million conservation project on the Royal Thai Pavilion at Madison’s Olbrich Botanical Gardens is being overseen by Javier de la Calle, managing director of Kalam, a company specializing in rehabilitation, restoration, and preservation of historical buildings, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. The pavilion, 30 feet tall, 40 feet long, 20 feet wide, and completed by Thai artisans in 2002, has seen expansions and contractions due to heat and cold that have compromised parts of the wooden structure.
The Kalam team will replace roof tiles and the lead coverings of the structure’s peaks and eves, and with a new proposal up for city approval, it would also begin a six-month project to restore the gold leafing, repair broken glass beads, and clean and repaint the structure.
The Royal Thai Pavilion is one of only four in the world outside of Thailand and is located on the east side of Starkweather Creek. It arrived in Wisconsin as a gift to UW–Madison from the government of Thailand and the Thai Chapter of the Wisconsin Alumni Association in 2001.
