Buda Castle and its gardens have been decorated with works of art since their foundation in the 14th century. Only written sources speak about the most important medieval works, but detailed pictorial and written information exists about the 19th century artistic decoration of the palace which was mainly created by the most important Hungarian artists of the turn-of-century. Many of the statues survived the destruction during the siege of Budapest in 1944-45 and they were restored later. On the other hand important works of art were destroyed during the controversial reconstruction of the castle during the 1950s and 1960s.