Restoration
Reference articles are in English.
Marble sculpture on the Balestrino family tomb in Staglieno, Genoa, after its 2024 restoration. Source
Description
Restoration addresses losses or alterations that impair the understanding or use of existing stonework. It may involve reassembling fragments or making a damaged design legible. The work follows examination of what survives and the evidence for intervention. Repair, reconstruction and cleaning each have their own scope.
History
Restoration has a long relationship with the care of historic art and buildings. Contemporary conservation terminology treats it as a specific activity within the wider protection of cultural heritage, with respect for surviving material and evidence.
Commissioning
A proposal should record condition, explain the intended result and justify any replacement or reconstruction. Original and new material should be documented. Where evidence is insufficient, the treatment should retain that uncertainty rather than invent missing detail.