Medieval Madonna and Child returned to vivid color

After six years of painstaking cleaning and conservation, the 14th century wooden sculpture of a Madonna And Child in the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence has been restored to its original vivid polychromy.

Known as the Bentornata (“Welcome Back”), the Madonna and Child was carved by Giovanni di Francesco Fetti in around 1382 from a single pear tree trunk. Fetti used deep reds and blues for Mary’s gown with gilded edges. Baby Jesus’ wrap was all gilded and both mother and child have gilded blonde hair. Later repainting and varnishes, most recently in the 19th century, had browned, obscuring the brilliance of the pigments. The gilded areas had not been overpainted, but they were darkened by dirt.

The Basilica of San Lorenzo is an icon of Renaissance architecture and the burial place of the Medici family, the great patrons of Renaissance art and architecture. It contains masterpieces by Renaissance luminaries like Donatello, Bronzino and Michelangelo, including a secret hiding place where Michelangelo whiled away months as a fugitive by drawing on the walls. The Bentornata is one of very few medieval artworks at San Lorenzo, and it is all the more exceptional for being a rare work in wood by Fetti who was primarily a marble sculptor.

Conservation experts at the Opificio delle Pietre Dure (OPD) first analyzed the sculpture in depth to determine what materials to use to remove the overpaint and grime on the different colors. The flesh, blue, red and gilded areas all required different solvents to preserve the surviving original paint. Restorers then consolidated cracks in the wood and retouched the filled gaps to camouflage them. There were areas, particularly on Mary’s mantle, where the paint had to be re-adhered. The final seal coats also had to be different for the different color areas.

The analyses conducted during the restoration provided valuable information about the commissioning and quality of the work. The fineness of the modeling, the refinement of the polychromy, and the use of precious materials, such as gold leaf for the foliage and translucent lacquers on a silver base, confirm that the “Bentornata” was commissioned by an important figure of the time.

The statue has now been returned to the Basilica of San Lorenzo and is back on public display.