Conservation

The purpose of a preliminary study, before the work is started, is to get all the facts and information in order to determine the correct treatments, the methodologies and technologies needed, as well as costs and timescales for the work.

The area chosen for the trials included surfaces with different characteristics, to assess:

- variations in manufacture (sculptured and polished blocks);
- different levels of exposure to deterioration (discoloured areas, eroded areas and less exposed inside areas);
situations with different conservation requirements, thick solid black crusts, - diffuse organic matter and areas with different levels of erosion;
- a good model for the many conservation treatments of joints.

The results from the tests allowed the team to:

- determine the relationship between specific treatments and the behaviour of the material, the analysis being done in this case after three years;
- verify the most effective cleaning treatment based on the characteristics of the deposits to be eliminated, the condition of the limestone and the surface area to be cleaned;
- test materials and treatments for the surface plaster and the joints.

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