The National Museum of Reggio Calabria let us know how the Riace Bronzes are doing!

From the National Museum of Reggio Calabria there is no news about the monitoring of the Riace Bronzes: in order to be adequately protected, the two statues in fact require a constant microclimate, according to values established by theCentral Institute for Restoration, which obviously need to be constantly monitored and can only be changed by the Institute itself, depending on multiple variables. In addition, the Riace Bronzes need to be monitored through appropriate instrumentation, which turns out to have been fine-tuned and improved with advanced systems, in the year 2016.

During the initiatives for the 50th anniversary celebrations of the discovery (it was 1972 when the Bronzes were found in the sea off the coast of Riace in Calabria) much has been said about the historical-artistic-archaeological issues related to the two statues. What’s more, at the recent conference organized by the Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio (ABAP) of the metropolitan city of Reggio Calabria and Vibo Valentia, only marginally were issues related to restoration work addressed, both of those carried out, moreover already published and made known to scholars, and those to be carried out in the near future.

Italia Nostra also expresses concern over the lack of news about the Riace Bronzes. “From the management of the National Museum of Reggio Calabria (Marc) there is no news about the current state of efficiency of the statues’ monitoring system, the possible criticalities of the system itself, or the need for its possible implementation, which could have been the subject of the discussion and wide-ranging discussion with Italian and foreign professionals provided by the above-mentioned conference.” Our magazine has tried to ask the museum’s director, Carmelo Malacrino, for information, without obtaining answers. “In addition,” Italia Nostra points out, “there is news from the press that the same director did not even answer the questions posed on the subject by Undersecretary Vittorio Sgarbi, on the occasion of his recent visit to the National Museum, precisely in the context of the aforementioned convention. In short, a deafening silence on a very delicate and fundamental problem for the preservation over time of the two unique and so important masterpieces, not only for technicians and for the entire scientific community but also for all humanity.”

The association therefore believes “to have to submit to the attention of all the entities in charge, primarily the MIC, through the institutional bodies (Minister, Undersecretary, General Directorate of Museums) and all those concerned (Region of Calabria, Metropolitan City),the problem of the state in which the sophisticated equipment to which the care of the two statues is entrusted, without, however, excluding a series of instances relating to the planning of future interventions that maintain and optimize the results achieved so far. Specifically, we ask whether maintenance of the equipment has been carried out; whether supervision and collaboration with the ICR is constant and who are the officials in charge; whether and what monitoring interventions have been activated to constantly document the state of health of the two statues; whether further restoration activities or other dynamics aimed at preventing any criticalities that might arise always from the point of view of conservation are planned in the short or wider range, also considering the geological fragility of the region. Finally, with heartfelt concern about the state of conservation of the Bronzes, we call for greater participation and sharing of planned activities, both with the scientific community and with Associations and society at large.”

The National Museum of Reggio Calabria let us know how the Riace Bronzes are doing!

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