At the Louvre, two statues of Michelangelo return after a scholarly and alchemical restoration

Two statues by Michelangelo, as well as several other major sculptures from the collections of the Louvre Museum, were presented to the press on Thursday after their restoration. They will soon be on public display again.

The Rebellious Slave and The Dying Slavetwo masterpieces weighing around a ton each made by the Italian Renaissance master for Pope Julius II (1503-1513), have been weathered over time, having stood outdoors nearly 250 years before their installation at the Louvre in 1994.

They were entrusted for months, along with two other medieval statues representing Charles V and Jeanne de Bourbon, to the restorers of the research and restoration center of the museums of France (C2RMF), based at the Louvre as well as at the Château de Versailles. That of the Louvre, located under the Carrousel garden, extends over 10,000 m2, including 6,000 m2 of restoration workshops. It employs 160 people, specializing in statuary, painting, graphic arts, decorative arts and archaeology.

C2RMF scientists and experts first analyzed the degree of alteration of the two Michelangelo statues, thanks to infrared, ultraviolet rays and sound waves. They then determined the most appropriate cleaning and restoration techniques (steam, sponge, laser, dissolving gels, filling cracks with marble powder and acrylic resins, etc.) to restore all their shine to the statues yellowed and covered with a film of plant microorganisms especially in their lower part, according to these experts.

One of them was also cracked all over the top. The general public will be able to admire them again at the Louvre from March 23, according to the museum. The statues of King Charles V of France (1364-1380) and his wife Jeanne de Bourbon (who died in 1378) are among the most important in the Louvre Museum’s collection of medieval sculptures. They are still in the hands of C2RMF experts who discovered, during their restoration work, remnants of the polychrome decoration that adorned the clothes of the two sovereigns.