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Restoration of the sculptures on the parapets
of the Winter Palace Between August and the end of 2004, restoration work on sculptures was carried out on the southern facade of the Winter Palace facing Palace Square. Detailed research on the state of preservation of all the 177 sculptures revealed the presence of numerous defects. Most of the sculptures showed a separation of seams where parts were joined and opening of cracks which in some places reached 15 centimeters. During the period from the 1930s-1950s, lime-based cement including pieces of limestone and brick was added inside the copper casing to increase the weight of the lower part of the statues and their resistance to the wind. By the present day this cement has undergone destructive processes and has become porous, easily absorbing the moisture of condensation. The constant moisture produced corrosion of the iron frames and they lost their reliability. As a result, a decision was taken to perform emergency work on 12 sculptures which were especially in danger and a description of the restoration tasks was drawn up. The methodology of the restoration work consisted in strengthening and solidifying the lower parts of the frames and changing the design of the fastenings and supports, leaving the sculptures hollow. The restoration work was carried out by two companies. The Special Scientific Restoration Workshops headed by N.I. Trubnikov put up scaffolding and restored two statues on the roof, the armature and two vases. For replacement of the lower parts of the framework, both sculptures were raised with the help of hoists and separated from their base. Despite the inconveniences of working during the winter time, the restoration was completed within the planned dates and was of high quality. The Art Expert scientific restoration company performed restoration on three vases and three statues. These sculptures were taken down from the roof and restored in a workshop within the same deadlines and the work was also of high quality. Moreover, this company also did a reconstruction of the Imperial crown which should be installed on the preserved stone pillow in the centre of the southern facade. Specialists of both subcontractors restored the copper casiing of the sculptures including flattening out deformations, redoing the seams and repairing cracks. They re-insulated the copper parts of the sculpture from iron using zinc lining. Holes were bored to allow condensation to run off. The sculptures were painted with a special compound intended for long-term display and preservation of hollow copper sculpture. The work was supervised by specialists from the Department of History and Restoration of Monuments of Architecture headed by Vladimir Lukin and the Department of Major Construction Work of the State Hermitage headed by Sergei Burdukov. In the period from June to November 2005, restoration work was carried out on the copper sculpture, produced in the repousse technique, on the parapet of the southern facade of the Winter Palace. The work was carried out by a brigade of copper engravers from the Special Scientific Restoration Workshops of the State Hermitage under the direction of Alexei Gerasimov and the Art Expert restoration company in accordance with the methodology approved by the Committee of the State Inspectorate for Preservation of Monuments. Methodological direction was provided by the employees of the State Hermitage's Department of History and Restoration of Architectural Monuments Vladimir Yefimov, Maya Lebel and Tatyana Prazdnikova. In the course of the restoration period, fourteen sculptures were produced. |
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