Legend of the True Cross (fresco cycle in Arezzo): Restoration of the fresco cycle

Among the big restoration projects undertaken in the last decade of the twentieth century, the one involving Piero della Francesca's legend of the True Cross in Arezzo was one of the most complex. It was a necessity to carry out this project because at he start of the 1980s there was such a serious, progressive deterioration that the painted plaster was bound to disintegrate, and be irrevocably lost. The project started with a wide-ranging and in-depth analysis. Exhaustive research was needed to gather all the documentary information about the history of the basilica and the great pictorial cycle. The study included the painstaking analysis, centimetre by centimetre, of the painted surfaces using all scientific instruments today available. Of great importance were the analysis and monitoring the microclimate inside the chapel.

After the preliminary studies carried out in 1985-90, the restoration of the frescoes began in 1991 and was completed in 2000. As a result of the restoration, the frescoes were returned to their original splendour.

The result of the restoration is illustrated by comparing a few details of the frescoes in the state after and before the restoration.