Conservation and Significance of St Philip Neri Statue in Qrendi

44 I JULY 26, 2020 THE SUNDAY TIMES OF MALTA THE SUNDAY TIMES OF MALTA JULY26, 2020 I 45 LIFE AND WELLBEING Death mask of St Philip Neri, at the altar of the Virgin of Porto Salvo, church of St Philip Neri, The polychrome and gilded statue of St Philip Neri The polychrome and gilded statue of St Philip Neri Leading ·Conservator Amy Sciberras (left) and her team An X-ray image of the statue's head. PHOTO: Senglea. PHOTO: CHRISTINA MELI before treatments. after conservation-restoration treatments. carrying out final touches. DIAGNOSTIC SCIENCE LABORATORIES, HERITAGE MALTA Consolidation treatments of a crack. Conservation and significance of St Philip Neri statue in Qrendi CHRISTINA MELI and rians gave it newlife and increased The statue was paid for by Gio · AMY SCIBERRAS its religious and social significance vanni Psaila, who also funded the conservation and restoration of inSenglea. gilded wooden pedestal, the plat this beloved portrayal of St Philip Xuereb sought to carry on his form supporting the statue (il Neri in Qrendi, the community can hometown's legacy ofthe cult of St bradeHa), the bench on which the once again appreciate the full legi Tue seed for the cult of St Philip Philip Neri also in Qrendi. The first statue and pedestal are placed bility and fitting presentation of Neri in Qrendi, which reaches its artistic work for the village depict when it was not being carried in this devotional statue. peak in the recently-restored ing the saintwas executed by artist procession (il-bankun) and the statue, was Sown in 1878 by parish Giuseppe Calleja in 1873. This small niche for the statue. The gilded priest Fr Pietro Paolo Xuereb when painting of St Philip Neli was given pedestal bears the emblem of St Acknowledgments he established the Confraternity of as a gift from the artist to Xuereb, Philip Neii and the coat of arms of The authors wish to thank Nicholas the Virgin of Low·des in the same who in turn gave it to the Confra the surname Psaila, and the in Azzopardi for providing informa locality. Xuereb hailed from Sen ternity of the Virgin of Lourdes scription "Expensis Joannis .Psalia tion for this article and Helitage glea and harboured a personal and placed it on the altar of St tal-NubeH A.D. 1878", which con Malta's Diagnostic Science Labora connection with St Philip Neri Stephen in Qrendi parish church. · firms the patron's name and date tories for the X-Ray radiography through the cult which the saint Today, this painting is housed in of execution ofthe statue. The con results and interpretation. already enjoyed in the Cottonera the church's sacristy. fraternity also commissioned a sil The conservation-restoration area. His decision to make St ver diadem for the statue as well as During cleaning treatments of grime, aged coatings and past A detail showing losses in the statue's gilded surface before projectwasmadepos&.blewiththe A photo taken during the reshaping of infilled losses which were Philip Neri the patron saint the gilding of the saint's vestments. retouchings. conservation-restoration treatments. PHOTOS: AMY SCIBERRAS support of the GAL XLqKK Foun of this confraternity confirmed "Darmanin Darmanin modelled the face of previously coated with past retouchings. dation and was entrnsted to Amy this allegiance. endowed the statue the saint on St Philip Neri's wax Sciberras by the Confraternity of The first community of Oratori death mask, which is held on the century. Named Giuseppe Dar Crucifix at Ta' Giezu church, Val the Blessed Immaculate Vtrgin of conserve and restore the statue. with textual and historical sources. Finally, the artist applied the ans of St Philip Neri in Malta was with an expression altar of the Virgin of Porto Salvo in manin e Figli (or Joseph Darmanin letta. The memorial plaque for The restoration project was en past. Other losses and cracks were Lourdes, Qrendi. The statue appears to have been polychromy, which would be com noted on the saint's hands and fin established in Vitt01iosa in 1650. the choir of the church of St Philip & Sons for their British clientele), Lorenzo Farrugia Bugeja, dating to trusted to author and fine arts con More information on the Dar of piety, especially manufactured in the traditional posed of various layers of gesso on gers, including in old repairs. The The church of Santa Maria degli Neri in Senglea. A death mask - a the firm was made up of 1858, in St Paul's Shipwreck parish servator/conservation director Maltese way. manin family is available from Angeli was entrusted to their care, top ofwhich the pigment layers are surface was also covered in accu through the eyes likeness of a person's face after GiusepP,e's five sons and four church, Valletta, is another of his Amy ScibeITaS and her team. Themannerwith which theartist Guido Lanfranco's article on the which they rebuiltand rededicated their death that is made by taking applied. In this case, both poly mulated grime which was greatly grandsons, and is renowned forits known marble works. The statue was scientifically constructs the statue is by initially sculptor (Sliema Leben ii-Banda, to St Philip Neri in 1651. An oratory, a cast or impression from the chromyand gilding hadbeen used. obscuring the original pol)'chromy of the saint" contribution to marble sculpture The notarial contract for this studied and examined by both creating a metal framework of tlie 1986), Fabian Mangion's article on central to their belief and religious corpse - ensured faithfulness to in Malta and abroad. commission also reveals that The radiography, in conjunction and gilding. his various worlcs (limes of Malta, Sdberras andbythe team ofscien figure and appepdages (known as with the p1""elimhrnry scientific ex apostolate, was erected adjacent to Five years later, in 1878, Xuereb the true facial features of St Philip Gerolamo Darmanin partici Gerolamo had his own bottega in Treatments carried out by lead June 15, 2014), and Jessica Muscat's tists from Heritage Malta's Diag the starue's a.nima}, onto which he aminations by the church. commissioned sculptor Gerolamo Neri, which was characterised by a pated in the Great Exhibition of Floriana, separate from his grand canied out Seiber· ing conservator Amy Scl'berras and extensive MA.dis.sertation (Depart. nostic Science Laboratories using then formulates a mannequin also A more populous community Darmanin (1834-79) to create a long strong nose and a wavy beard. 1851 with wax statuettes, two of father's workshop. Gerolamo ras, were essential to her team included stabilisation mentofArtandArt History, Rlculty a non-invasive scientific strategy usingpapier-macl1e. 111e artisttl1en understand of was established in Senglea on July processional statue of St Philip Darmanin also endowed the statue which portrayed Grand Masters eventually becan1e a renowned pa· the state conserva and consofidation of WJstabie ofArts, University of Malta, 2019}. invofving X-ray radiography applies fabric which woufd have tion and forms of deterioration. 15, 1661, when the petition that six Neti. The Darmanin family was al with an expression of piety, Jean de Vallette and Marc' Antonio pier-mache religious statuarian. (XRAD). Tue main aims were toes areas of the paint layer, the gilded been bathed with adhesive to stick 111e statue of St Philip Neri was suf surface and the underlying layers. priests presented to Bishop Bala ready connected to Qrendi since especially through the eyes of the Zondadari. Wax was a mediun1 Over the past few years, parish· tablish the manufactwing tech to thepapier -mache, thusfummiat Conservator Amy Sciberras di guer with the request to form a Gerolamo's uncle, Carlo Dar saint, which are testament to . that the Darmanin workshop was ioners noted how Gerolamo Dar· fering from cracks and localised Cracl<s werealsoaddresseddming rects a team of conservators and nique of tl1e actual structure and ing the vestment. detachments which had resulted congregation undertheprotection manin, hadbeen commissioned to his devoutness. not particularly known for· since manin's venerated statue of these interventions and were fol has been entrusted with restoration s1 its state of conservation. Dwing this process~nails are ap of St Philip Neri and to adopt the make the processional statue of Gerolamo Darmanin, born in they specialised in marble works. Philip Neri had darkened and ho\1 in flaking and losses of its poly- . lowed by cleaning treatments. Un" projects of national and interna Radiographywas essential in the plied tovarious areas to create folds chromy and gilding. These losses way of life according to the rule of the Virgin of Lourdes. The atttibu Senglea on June 12, 1834, was the His work received words of praise it was also suffering from numer successful capture of the internal profesfilonal old interventions and tional importa.nce. Christina Meli is in the fabric in order to achieve the were particularly evident 011 the pastretouchingwhichhadalteredin the Oratorians, was accepted. tion of the statue of St Philip Neri son of sculptor Salvatore Dar from thejury, attesting to his skills ous losses, especially in the gildel structure of specific areas in the desired effect. Indeed, from the a research support officer and PhD The church of the Vll'gin of Porto to Darmanin is confirmed by the manin and Malia Anna Frendo. and talent. tunic and base. Due to the greatde silver leaf at the base of the statue colour were removed. This was fol candidate in the Department ofAlt statue. From the radiographs it be radiographs it was evident that andon the gilded tunic of the saint. Salvo, situated on the edge of the inscription on the lower part ofthe His grandfather, Giuseppe Dar Gerolamo also worked in mar votion to St Philip Neri, who is stil came apparent that the papier lowed by theJnt:egration of los.5es in andArtHistoryatthe Unil'efsityof both hand-forged and smooth Furthermore, a significant crack the polychrome and gilded surface.

Load more