Cimabue's Majesty of Assisi restored. Original face of St. Francis unveiled.

A presentation was held this morning on the conclusion of restoration work on the fresco Madonna Enthroned with Child, Angels and St. Francis by Cimabue, also known as the Majesty of Assisi. The restoration was carried out by a team from Tecnireco led by head restorer of the Basilica of St. Francis Sergio Fusetti, thanks to the contribution of the Ferrari car manufacturer. The conservation project began in January 2023, 50 years after the last intervention, and required a year of work.

Made with a dry technique, and for this reason less resistant over time, since the 16th century the fresco has undergone numerous restorations, causing significant changes, as in the case of the face of St. Francis. The last intervention was carried out in 1973 by theCentral Institute for Restoration. In the recently completed project, numerous investigations were carried out with different techniques and non-invasive instrumentation to analyze the state of conservation of the work and the materials used in previous restorations. Therefore, it was decided to carry out a conservative work of the fresco, removing all previous restorations. The intervention followed the 1973 Central Institute of Restoration model with a less invasive approach that sought to enhance the artist’s contribution and also focused on consolidating the plaster of the wall structure.

The work, the first created by Cimabue inside the Basilica of St. Francis, can be dated between 1285 and 1290 and is located on the right side of the north transept of the Basilica’s lower church. The fresco is famous not only for its depiction of the enthroned Virgin, but also for what is believed to be one of the oldest and most reliable portraits of St. Francis himself, made, according to tradition, based on the indications of those who had known him personally.

“I am extremely grateful to Professor Fusetti and the team at Tecnireco, and of course to Ferrari,” said Friar Marco Moroni, OFMConv, Custos of the Sacred Convent, “for the synergy that has made it possible to bring to new splendor an’image that is not only a work of art, but is - first and foremost for us Franciscans and for all devotees of the Saint - a reminder of the high symbolic value of the figure and values of Saint Francis himself. This is particularly significant as we prepare for the great Franciscan centenary of 2026 in which we will celebrate the eight hundredth anniversary of the Easter of the Saint of Assisi. The portrait of St. Francis, represented in this masterpiece by Cimabue, necessarily brings us back to his historical figure, which still manifests extraordinary relevance today and continues to be a source of profound provocations for each of us, for the Church, and for the entire world.”

The restoration of Cimabue’s Majesty is part of the larger project of maintenance and conservation of the heritage present inside the Basilica of St. Francis, which has become even more necessary following the seismic events of recent decades and because of the risk of possible new earthquakes. Following this latest work just presented, the restoration of the Chapel of St. Stephen, frescoed by Dono Doni and Giacomo Giorgetti, is beginning these days.

Cimabue's Majesty of Assisi restored. Original face of St. Francis unveiled.

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