A crane will move an M4 Sherman tank to the new museum being built in Pilsen, a unique operation that will cause traffic restrictions on Klatovská Street over the weekend

On Saturday, October 11, a special crane will move a 30-ton M4 Sherman tank over the roof of a building on Klatovská Street in Pilsen. The tank has undergone a complete renovation and is equipped with period accessories. It will be placed in a new extension to the historic Semler family house at Klatovská 19, where Pilsen is building a new museum. The tank, part of the collection of the Military History Institute in Prague, will become the symbol of the museum and the largest and most valuable exhibit in the planned exhibition. The action will take place over the weekend so that traffic restrictions, including tram, are kept to a minimum.

"The legendary M4 Sherman tank is a symbol of freedom and the end of the war for Pilsen, and I am delighted that it has been successfully renovated. This weekend, we will place the tank in a dignified location in the newly established museum at Klatovská 19, where it will be a key exhibit," said Mayor Roman Zarzycký. The "Pilsen" Sherman comes from an American base in Vilseck, Germany, and was transported to Pilsen in 2011, where it was on display at the zoological and botanical gardens ever since.

According to Deputy Mayor Pavel Bosák, a special crane will move the tank to its new location. The entire operation will require extraordinary measures, including the dismantling of trolleybus wires, restrictions on public transport, and the temporary closure of part of Klatovská Street to traffic. "The crane will lift it over the roof of the building on Klatovská Street into the courtyard of the future museum. The building at Klatovská 19 has been empty since 2002 and, once opened, will offer an interactive exhibition on the liberation of western Bohemia by Allied forces and will also open up the listed Loos interiors, which are part of the building. The tank will stand in the courtyard, and the new courtyard extension will be dedicated to General Patton and his 3rd US Army," he said. The entire project should be completed in the second half of 2026, and the museum, including the exhibitions, could open in the spring of 2027.

"We will install the M4 Sherman tank using an AC 500 crane, which has a 180-ton counterweight and an extended lattice boom with a length of 54 meters, giving the boom a total length of approximately 80 meters. We will transport the accessories for this crane on six trucks. We estimate that the actual lifting and installation of the tank in the building at Klatovská 19 will take no more than an hour," said Petr Březina, head of the Heavy Transport and Cranes Center at APB – Plzeň a.s.

Sherman was transported from the zoo in April 2024 for renovation. The renovation was carried out by Pavel Rogl from the Military History Club of the 16th Armored Division. "This tank was still in service after the war, which means it had a lot of non-war-related parts installed. During the renovation, we not only had to clean it of rust, dirt, and everything that wasn't original, but also restore it to its original form. We searched for a number of spare parts, many of them in America, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Of course, we focused mainly on original parts. The tank was supplemented with all components, it has lights, sights, periscopes, tools, and other equipment," explained Pavel Rogl.

"In the basement, the exhibition will take visitors through wartime Pilsen, show them how weapons were manufactured at Škoda, and let them experience the atmosphere of bombed-out Pilsen, enhanced by a war shelter simulator. I am delighted that the museum will also have educational benefits for pupils and students from Pilsen and the Pilsen Region," said Lucie Kantorová, Deputy Mayor for Education and Tourism.

From wartime Pilsen, visitors will ascend to an area with projections about the Pilsen uprising, liberation, and the end of the war in Pilsen and Europe. On the first floor, they will find a restored First Republic interior and learn about Adolf Loos, the principles of his work, and the moving stories of Pilsen families who were his clients. The second floor will transform the euphoria of liberation into skepticism about the new totalitarian regime. Part of the exhibition will also be dedicated to the Liberation Festival Pilsen, World War II veterans, their stories, and more. Thanks to the reconstruction, Loos's valuable interiors on the second floor will be permanently accessible, including the music salon, living room, and dining room. The author of the reconstruction and exhibition design is architect Ludvík Grym. The exhibition is being prepared and the museum will be operated by Plzeň-TURISMUS.

Due to the relocation of the tank, tram service on line 4 will be suspended from approximately 6:00 p.m. on October 10 to October 12, 2025. Trams will run on the Košutka – Sady Pětatřicátníků route and back. Replacement buses 4A will provide transport during this period on the section Bory/Univerzita – Sady Pětatřicátníků and back. Klatovská will be closed in both directions on Saturday around 11:00 a.m., when construction of the security perimeter fence for the tank transfer will begin. The lane for public transport and cars in the direction of Bory is scheduled to open at 4:00 p.m., but there may be a delay.

The city received a subsidy of CZK 69.4 million from the European IROP (Integrated Regional Operational Program) through ITI (Integrated Territorial Investment) for the reconstruction of the historic building at Klatovská 19 in Pilsen, as well as a subsidy from SFPI (State Investment Support Fund) for the revitalization of brownfield sites as part of the National Recovery Plan in the amount of CZK 54.4 million.

Text: Eva Barborková