Royal Palace of Caserta, restoration finished at the Royal Apartments

At the Royal Palace of Caserta , the restoration of the Royal Apartments has been completed, an intervention of considerable importance, involving some of the most significant rooms of the palace. The work, financed with more than 920 thousand euros from the Complementary Operational Program for Action and Cohesion 2014-2020 and the PON Culture and Development 2014-2020, involved the Throne, Mars, Astrea and Silver rooms, and covered the walls, paintings, floors, and ceilings, with restorers working in some rooms even twenty meters above the ground.

The restoration was carried out without closing the museum to the public and without even impeding the passage of visitors who, on the contrary, were able to closely observe the work of the restorers, appreciating their precision and expertise. The Archaeology cooperative, responsible for the interventions, ensured the safety and quality of the operations, demonstrating great mastery in each step of the restoration. This important project not only preserves and enhances the historical heritage of the Royal Palace of Caserta, but also offers the public an opportunity to approach the complex and fascinating processes of artistic restoration.

In the Halls of Astrea, Mars and Throne (made under Joachim Murat starting in 1806), restorers conducted preliminary diagnostic investigations, revealing that the stuccoes had been repainted in past eras, compromising their modeling. In addition, lesions and detachments were identified. Aftermechanical and chemical cleaning, consolidation with fiberglass pins, grouting with suitable materials, and color rebalancing with lime colors mixed with pure pigments and watercolors were carried out.

As for the vault paintings, in the Hall of Astrea, the large canvas depicting the Goddess of Justice (five meters by ten), with the goddess whose face resembles the features of Caroline Bonaparte, painted by Jacques Berger, was disassembled to inspect and repair the damaged plaster behind. The canvas was removed and cleaned in total safety 18 meters above the ground (a large wooden frame of the same size as the painting was built, supported by six hydraulic jacks and a wheeled structure capable of allowing movement: the canvas, hooked to a wooden frame embedded in the plaster through twenty large screws, was detached and laid in the frame, then lowered with great precision). Similarly, in the Throne Room, Gennaro Maldarelli’s fresco representing The Laying of the Foundation Stone of the Royal Palace was restored by treating major lesions and stabilizing the decohered color.

The floor of the Hall of Public Hearings underwent further work: more than 40 meters long, it is made of “faux marble” painted terracotta bricks and was in a very poor state of preservation. Cleaning was carried out with vacuum cleaners, soft bristle brushes and sponges, and a differentiated cleaning with solvents and complexants. Next, consolidation was carried out using mortar and resin, and finally color integration and pictorial retouching by hand.

Finally, in the Silver Rooms, the decorations on the vaults and walls had lesions, color lifts, and obvious color integration. Electrical systems installed over time had left visible traces, with holes and electrical cables on the vault. Restoration operations involved removing these traces and restoring the decorations with great precision.

Royal Palace of Caserta, restoration finished at the Royal Apartments

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