Restoration of 51 15th-century wooden tablets at Salò Palazzo by Anna Massardi
“I expect to complete the restoration by the end of November,”
affirms Anna Massardi, who is restoring to its former glory 51 wooden tablets (from the Quattrocento period), discovered in 1981 during restoration work on the Palazzo comunale di Salò.
They have a maximum height of 25 centimeters and a length ranging from 27 to 37 centimeters.
Being affected by woodworm, I first had to disinfect them, inject resins, and then fill the cracks.
The faces of the ladies and warriors, heraldic shields, peacocks, a swan, raptors, the Lion of Saint Mark, etc., are tempera on egg or fig milk, treated (originally) with a binder; otherwise, the pigment would have disappeared.
Restoration Techniques and Interventions
“To achieve the watercolor effect, I use powders diluted with Arabic gum.”
In many cases, no faces could be seen at all. So, to soften the layer, I resorted to compresses with Japanese paper.
I was satisfied to uncover unexpected figures.
Every operation is carried out with the approval of an inspector from the Soprintendenza per i beni artistici e storici di Brescia, Cremona e Mantova.
The most damaged tablets require at least a seven-day work process.
The intervention was financed by Soroptimist.
The tablets appeared when the ceiling of the Ufficio anagrafe and the archivio-magazzino were rebuilt; these rooms, during the Magnifica Patria era, served as the representative hall of the Venetian Provveditore.
Originally part of a coffered ceiling, hidden beneath a thick layer of plaster, they were probably placed on supporting beams.
The Palazzo was designed by Sansovino.
On the ground floor, there were grain and merchandise storages.
A historian, Gratarolo, recounts that the pillars of the porticoes were built with “terracotta squares.”
Later, fearing they might not support the weight of the building, they were replaced with “large stone blocks, with almost marvelous craftsmanship.”
Later still, the external walls were painted by Brescia-born Tommaso Sandrini.
Reconstructed after the 1901 earthquake in 1905.
Anna Massardi, a native of Gardone Riviera (residing in Gardone Riviera), has already carried out numerous interventions: from frescoes in the Pieve di Nuvolento to paintings in the chapel of Valverde in Villanuova, from the cemetery of S. Felice to the altarpiece by Cossati (Portese), at the Paitone sanctuary, as well as the parochial church of Soiano (altars, stuccoes, paintings) and S. Rocco in Pavone Mella.
In the council chamber of Verolanuova, she uncovered a 1500s coffered ceiling.
For the municipality of Salò, she restored “La magnifica patria”, an oil painting on the wall of the entrance staircase, as well as canvases by Anton Maria Mucchi and the 1478 frescoes in the Sala dei Provveditori.
On behalf of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and the Regione Lombardia, she is currently cataloging artworks in the Oltrepo Pavese: castles, palaces, churches, etc.
She is part of the Technical Scientific Committee of the Piacenza Restoration School.
Her latest success was on Ferragosto.
Alongside Giorgio Camisani from Brescia, she won the Madonnari competition at the Santuario delle Grazie di Curtatone, in the province of Mantova, in the category reserved for first-time participants.
The duo proposed “The Lament of Christ over the City of Jerusalem”, based on a painting by American artist Greg Olsen.
“To close the porosity,” Anna recalls, “we treated the asphalt with pigments, then drew the grid to define proportions.”
After sketching the painting, they completed it using only chalks, blending the colors with their hands.
An effort that took 24 hours.
A wonderful experience.
We did not expect so many people.
Indeed, 240 artists participated: Japanese, Germans, Czechs, Slavs, Canadians, French.
In other categories (qualified Maestri and Madonnari), no Brescia-born artists stood out.
