Hungary's largest Roman Catholic church, the Esztergom Basilica will be renovated at a cost of HUF 13 billion (EUR 40 million) over the next four years.
The Esztergom Basilica is both the mother church of the Archdiocese of Esztergom-Budapest, and the seat of the Catholic Church in Hungary.
Situated on a hill overlooking the Danube bend near the Slovak border, it is the largest church and the tallest building in Hungary. Its inner area is 5,600 m² and stretches 118 m long, 49 m wide and 100 m high.
Its altarpiece depicting the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, by Girolamo Michelangelo Grigoletti is the largest painting in the world painted on a single piece of canvas, 13.5 × 6.6 meters.
The first phase of the reconstruction - the front and the 400 stairs leading to it - is planned to be completed next year, when Hungary will host the Eucharistic World Congress in September.