A piece of propaganda from our colonial past
The architect Georges Hobé designed this timber frame for the World Expo of 1897, which took place in Tervuren (BE). The focus of the expo, which was organized in the specially for the occasion built Koloniënpaleis (Colonial Palace), centered around the riches to be found in Congo, King Leopold II's personal showpiece. The exposition was meant to underline the economical value of the colony to the average Belgian citizen, and to educate the public on the treasure trove known as Congo.
To achieve this goal, a few promising, young artists-architects were employed to design and decorate the exposition rooms. Among those chosen, was the Brussels based furniture maker and architect Georges Hobé, who designed this monumental timber frame out of Billinga, a wood species brought over from Congo.
After the World Expo and the following use of the Colonial Palace as a museum, the building slowly got into disarray. Not until the late 1970s, the palace was repurposed as an office building. During the renovation works, the timber frame was dismantled, and because of some administrative delays, only rebuilt in 1984-1985 in the courtyard of the refurbished palace. There, it remained for years, until some parts came falling down. To ensure the safety for visitors, the timber frame was dismantled again. Its parts were moved into the cellars of one of the buildings used by the Africa Museum.
The parts were still laying in these cellars when we started our inventory and research project. A historical study was combined with a material and technical check of all individual parts of the construction. Traceological research shed some light on which parts were original, and which were replaced or added during rebuilding in 1984-1985. These different parts of the research project cumulated into a clear vision on a possible, future restoration and a thorough treatment plan.
