Although our Lady of Hope Catholic Church in Northern Virginia is a new Church, it had many items that needed repair. An 80-year-old rear altar covered with dirt and profoundly broken, a front altar, and multiple antique holy water fonts, all collected by the church from sanctuaries and closed churches at various cities around the country.
Rugo spent nine months carefully restoring a massive Gothic rear altar, modifying a salvaged altar of sacrifice, creating a new mensa, and restoring and repairing statues and fonts. The figures arrived with broken fingers and noses. Rugo’s skilled craftsmen were able to recarve missing pieces to make the repairs invisible. We also designed and fabricated a new Serpentine marble raised sanctuary platform, and an inlaid marble mosaic entry floor in the Narthex.
This project showcased all of Rugo’s in house skills to repair, restore and repurpose antique sacramental items, and perform a seamless installation. This project was a big success and won the 2006 MIA Pinnacle Award of Excellence for Restoration.
Location: Potomac Falls, VA
Completion: 2006
Owner: Catholic Diocese of Arlington
Architect: Kerns Architects
General Contractor: Scott Long Construction
Size: 7.000 sqft
Services: Design, restore existing altars & statues, fabricate and insatll new sanctuary
