INTERVENTION OF RESTORATIONpair of wings

belong toWOODEN ANGEL OF THE

CATHEDRAL MUSEUM OF MILANand other interventions on the carving statue

Simonetta Capetta

Couple of wings Angel statue:

ANALYSIS INTERVENTION OF RESTORATION

INTERVENTION OF RESTORATION

UVNVESTIGATION

Removing inconsistentdeposits

Consolidation and reconstruction of the basement

FT-IR Cleaning consistent deposits

Dowels chromatic intonation

XRF Removing repainting Filling lacunae support

Filling cromia lacunae Painting integration

Painting integration Finishing basement

1

Photography from the catalog 1978

The angel waspart of the mainaltar of theCathedral of Milanuntil 1927, theyear in which itwas put to thedeposits.

2Description

Photography from the catalog 1978 whit the wing.

3Description

FRONT BACK

Photography from the catalog 1978

4Description

Angel statue with his attributed wings.

SUBSTRATE: Presence of cracks caused by the shrinkage of the wood POLYCHROMY: Lacunae of cromiaExtensive repainting Dripping of paint on the back

5Conservation status

6Multispectral Analysis: UV images

7Multispectral Analysis: UV images

XRF

FRONT LEFT WING

1. GOLDEN LEAFAu, Ag, Cu, Zn, Pb2. COPPER LEAF

Cu, Zn, Fe, Ca, K, Pb3. PORPORINA LAYER

Cu, Zn, Fe, Ca, K

FT-IR

FRONT LEFT WINGa. finishing on gilding:

natural resin, calcite, lead white b. Bronze finishing:

natural resin, gypsumc. Repainting:

silicate, gypsum, natural resin, polyvinyl acetate.

BACK LEFT WINGd. Repainting:

silicate, gypsum, natural resine. Drippings:

Polyvinyl acetate, lead white, gypsum

FT-IR

FRONT RIGHT WINGf. Fluorescent finishing:natural resin.g. Repainting: silicate, lead white, natural resin, polyvinyl acetate h. Preparation: calcite, lead white.

ALA DESTRA RETROi. Repainting: silicate, gypsum, natural resin

8FT-IR, XRF

9Stratigraphic analysis

Stratigraphic section observedunder an optical microscopeat 200X magnification.Sample taken from the area ofthe right arm of the sculptureof the angel.

1. ORIGINAL LAYER OF PREPARATION

2. SILVER LEAF

3. SECOND PREPARATION LAYER

4. BRONZE CROMIA

Stato di conservazione

RIGHT WING Cleaning with thickened solutionof ethanol in water.

LEFT WING Cleaning with neutral oily emulsion.

10Surface cleaning

NEUTRAL OILYEMULSION:

4 ml Tween 2010 ml ofdemineralizedwater90 ml of ligroin

ETHANOLSOLUTION INWATER

4 ml Tween 20100 ml ofdemineralizedwater15 ml of ethanolKlucel

11

The test results

RIGHT WINGMixture LE1 - FD91(90% ligroin, 10% ethanol)to remove repainting and notaffect the resin surface.

LEFT WINGDifficult to identify theappropriate mix.Initial removal with LE8 - fd 42(20% ligroin, 80% ethanol) that istoo aggressive and also removesthe natural resin.

Cleaning tests: Test of solubility (Wolbers test)

Cleaning tests: Test of solubility (Wolbers test) 12

I risultati del test:

Choosed the mixture LE1 forremoval repainting.

Hypothesis removal• synthetic resin• wax mixed with resin

Difficult to differentiate the layersof original painting andsubsequent maintenance.

Cleaning results 13

Cleaning results: UV images 14

ALA SINISTRA Stuccatura

LEFT WING

RIGHT WING

15RIGHT WINGFilling

Filling with gypsum and glue in the preparation lacunae of the

polychrome.

16

Watercolor Integration with selection technique for gilded areas.

Chromatic integration

17

REGALREZ 1126

in ligroin with the additionof Kraton G (10% on a drybasis).First infiltration inconcentration to 5%.Second infiltration to 10%.

Basement: consolidation

18

Wooden poplar dowels glued to the substrateby epoxy resin for wood (Araldite sv127) andthen bonding with aliphatic glue (Titebond).

Basement: reconstruction

19

Filling with colored epoxy resin (balsite).

Basement: filling the substrate lacunae

20

Watercolor chromatic Intonation of the dowels added.

Basement: chromatic intonation of the dowels

21Statue: painting integration

22

Chromatic selection technique with watercolor for imitation of bronze and gold leaves only for the areas of reintegration of the preparation (filling).

Statue: painting integration

23The finished restoration

24The finished restoration