Ave Maria! The coronation of the Virgin Mary was honored last month by the restoration of a beautiful painting depicting it, at St. John’s CoCathedral in Valletta, Malta.
The St John’s CoCathedral Foundation has unveiled the restoration of the Coronation of the Virgin Mary, a majestic and large painting which was in dire need of intervention.
The painting was in an advanced state of deterioration because of the movements it had sustained, especially when it had been removed from its frame and placed into storage during war time, Cathedral CEO Cynthia de Giorgio said.
Past interventions covered some of the details of the iconography obscuring the original aesthetics of the composition. The layers of varnish that had been given to the painting had darkened over the years rendering the canvas surface dull and the subject difficult to comprehend.
The restoration methods used in this project reversed past interventions and brought the painting close to its former condition.
“The process unveiled the elegant iconography of the mannerist style of this painting which can now be safely placed as a production of the late 16th century,” she said.
Source: ‘Majestic’ Coronation of the Virgin Mary painting restored
