PADUA - The restoration of Giotto's frescoes in the arch of the Chapel of Santa Caterina in the Basilica del Santo in Padua has returned original parts of the painting that had never been revealed before.
After the consolidation of the pictorial surface that appeared flaked and partially detached in several points, the first cleaning pieces were carried out, and the results - say the restorers - are surprising.
Some iridescent colors of the clothes, the extraordinary pink color of the complexions, the chiaroscuro of faces and hands were brought to light.
The delicate restoration, promoted by the Pontifical Delegation of the Basilica del Santo, in synergy with the Municipality of Padua and the Cariparo Foundation, preceded by a campaign of diagnostic investigations and the mapping of all the paintings, has thus reached a crucial phase. The careful intervention with a scalpel eliminated parts that had never been removed and that limited the reading of Giotto's original parts. All the gilding of the halos dates back to the restoration of 1923, but a trace of the original gilding has survived in the rod of the Cross held in the hand by one of the saints portrayed by Giotto on the inside of the arch. Equally, the freehand drawings of some of the crowns placed on the heads of the saints are now clearly legible. (HANDLE).