Dante's cenotaph in the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence restored

Presented the restoration of Dante’s cenotaph in the Basilica of Santa a Croce in Florence. Created by sculptor Stefano Ricci, the monument was unveiled on March 24, 1830, and was accomplished by public subscription. It is a symbol of the Poet’s reconciliation with Florence and the unified values of the Risorgimento.

The restoration was carried out by the Opera di Santa Croce in collaboration with the City of Florence and the Fondo Edifici di Culto (FEC) of the Ministry of the Interior, entities that own the monumental complex, and was financed thanks to a number of donors. Today, on the occasion of Dantedì, the intervention was presented and actress Monica Guerritore recited some tercets from Canto XXIV of Purgatory, one of which is partly engraved on the monument. An appeal for hope that was also shared by Opera di Santa Croce President Irene Sanesi, Florence Mayor Dario Nardella, Prefect Alessandra Guidi and Father Paolo Bocci, rector of the Basilica.

The conservation work was conducted through traditional methodologies and laser technology, which allowed intervention in the parts with the greatest problems. The work was divided into several phases: dusting of all surface deposits, pre-consolidation, stratigraphic investigations, surface cleaning, consolidation, reparations and grouting. Using a specific technique, the gold-ground inscriptions were also restored. Immediately after the flood, the cenotaph had undergone an overall cleaning operation, and today’s intervention also removed some residual silt as well as some engravings by vandals.

Ph.Credit Opera di Santa Croce

Dante's cenotaph in the Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence restored

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