A 13th-century icon of the Madonna
di Sant'Alessio is once again shining in the Rectory Church of
Saints Boniface and Alexius on Rome's Aventine Hill following
restoration work.
Experts at the Institute for Conservation and Restoration
(ISCR) in Rome have recovered the golden-brown tones of the
flesh and clothes, as well as a crown featuring precious stones.
Scholars followed the three-year long restoration to study
the style of the icon and compare it with similar versions of
the Madonna in other Rome churches.
Several such devotional images had been carefully secured
in the second half of the 19th century and this painting had
been previous restored in 1952 by Cesare Brandi.
It represented the idea of the Madonna interceding for the
faithful, a style that was believed to be widespread in Rome in
medieval times.
Unusually, it depicts the Madonna alone, without the Christ
Child, and she watches the observer slightly turned to the
right, holding her right hand raised, while the left is pressed
against her chest to indicate that the Virgin intercedes for
all those who turn to her.
The image was also venerated with the name of 'Advocata' to
express her role as mediator between God and humanity.
When the icon arrived in the ISCR laboratories, they found
fewer conservation problems than encountered with similar icons,
such as that of the Madonna of Ara Coeli on Rome's Capitoline
Hill.
Work focused on cleaning the surface to restore the
vibrancy of the original paints.
As well, a device to measure temperature and humidity was
tucked into the back of the frame.
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