Paintings by artists from the circle of Raphael are emerging again from under centuries of overpainting at the Villa Silvestri Rivaldi, a long-abandoned Renaissance palace a short walk from the Colosseum, Smithsonian Magazine reports.
The palazzo was built between 1534 and 1547 for a chamberlain of Pope Paul III and later housed cardinals and members of the Medici family. Its walls and ceilings were covered in frescoes of classical gods and biblical scenes, but later religious occupants painted over the nude figures. Conservators working on a $40 million restoration backed by Italy’s Ministry of Culture are now using lasers to lift those layers away and reveal the originals.
The building had fallen into disrepair and was at one point occupied by squatters. The first phase of work is stabilising its floors and ceilings, with the aim of bringing one of Rome’s great lost interiors back to life.
Source: Smithsonian Magazine