Another stage of conservation works on the frescoes of Michelangelo Palloni and sculpture-stucco decorations on the ceilings of the Garden Galleries of the Wilanów Palace began with the start of the new year and will continue for another month. After the completion of works in the North Gallery, the South Gallery and Lapidarium were covered with scaffolding. Both interiors were initially one space, from which a small room for the exhibition of ancient sculptures was separated in mid-19th century. Until mid-20th century, the South Gallery remained open, which had a significant impact on the poor condition of its decorations. Despite the renovations undertaken since the 18th century, the original paintings and polychrome reliefs, as well as their later reconstructions, suffered further degradation.
The plaster of the paintings was poorly adhered to the backing, requiring reinforcement with resin solutions, introduced via pressure injections. On the other hand, the cracked and weakened structures were joined together with fibreglass rods.
The surfaces of the historical monuments were cleaned and after initial tests, the removal of the 20th-century retouches and older repaintings began. They are ascribed to Jan Strzałecki, a painted employed in the late 19th century by Aleksandra Potocka. The uncovering of the preserved original is an extremely difficult and labour-intensive task, requiring considerable experience from conservators. Detailed observations and analyses of various areas of the paintings are necessary. In many places, it has been possible to uncover significant fragments of original painted decorations and their details, which had previously been completely covered by the repaintings.
Thanks to the ongoing works, a lot of new information has been obtained about the working methods of Baroque-era artists and later renovators. A bas-relief background, covered with imitation gold, was uncovered on one of the covings – it will most likely be left as is, as a witness to the historical modifications of the gallery. Another place has shown that the palace can hide true secrets. During architectural discovery, an empty space was discovered under the ceiling between the vertical structures of the wall separating the gallery from the Lapidarium. After removal of several bricks, fragments of a bas-relief scene were revealed on the ceiling, outlines of clouds and fragments of figures were identified. It was possible to prepare photographic and video documentation of large portions of the mysterious scene with putti (the video can be viewed here). This excellent discovery of the decoration, which has been inaccessible and hidden from sight since mid-19th century will allow for a more thorough investigation of the technique of the 17th-century bas-relief sculptures, located among Palloni's frescoes, as well as tracking their colour changes from the 18th century.
Next, the ceiling decorations of both galleries will be appropriately secured during the renovation carried out on the first floor of the palace.
