This was the moment when one of the most emblematic works of the Vatican Museums saw the light again after almost five years of restoration.
It is the sculpture of Apollo, a marble sculpture of the second century. It is a copy of the bronze original made in Greece around 330 BC.
The damage it acquired over the centuries had taken its toll. Its weight was unbalanced and in 2019 the alarm bells rang.
FABIO MORRESI
Scientific Research Department, Vatican Museums
The checks made indicated that there were problems. The statue was shifting, was losing balance and could collapse.
The statue suffered some damage over time. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the sculpture was abandoned for centuries. It was rediscovered in 1489. Pope Julius II ordered it to be brought to the Vatican. Then Napoleon took it to Paris and it was some time before it was returned. In the 1980s it traveled to the United States for an exhibition. And in 2009, the terrible earthquake in L'Aquila, almost 150 kilometers from Rome, also caused damage.
To prevent the statue from collapsing, it was decided to study how to better distribute the weight. And this was the result: an external support, minimally invasive and calculated to the millimeter.
BARBARA JATTA
Director, Vatican Museums
The aim is to preserve the works so that they can be admired and the restoration done has been thanks to the synergies and professionalism of so many people. This is what we want to offer as the image of the Vatican Museums.
The restoration work did not only involve the installation of the support. The statue was also cleaned and an optical fiber was introduced inside it to help measure the displacements inside the marble.
FABIO MORRESI
Scientific Research Department, Vatican Museums
We take advantage of all of the most modern technology. From the three-dimensional simulation of the mathematical models we project to technology used in Formula 1, such as intertwined carbon fibers or optical fibers that measure displacements.
BARBARA JATTA
Director, Vatican Museums
There is no doubt that today is a day of celebration at the Vatican Museums. This is one of the icons of classical beauty, one of the important statues of our collection and today we present it to the general public after several years.
Now, visitors to the Vatican Museums can once again contemplate it along with the other historic sculptures that adorn this courtyard, along with the famous Hermes and the incomparable Laocoön.
TR: JD
