The first of seven chapels in the oldest part of the Mariendom in Linz (the chapel wreath) was restored with sensitivity and delicacy and in a very intensive cooperation. At yesterday’s presentation of the approximately 8.5 meter high mosaic dating from 1911 and the surrounding stone shell, everyone involved was full of praise for the joint approach.
Restorer Susanne Beseler and the team from the Dombauhütte under master builder Michael Hager and master craftsman Gerhard Fraundorfer have brought the heavily soiled mosaics in the chapel “Queen of the Maidens” back to a high gloss in close cooperation with the Federal Monuments Office. “This is a model specification for the other six chapels,” said Petra Weiss, head of the State Conservatory for Upper Austria.
Double cleaning
The basis for the work was the extensive analysis by Beseler a year ago, which formed the basis for the detailed concept of the restoration. In concrete terms, the mosaics and the surrounding stone shell were first cleaned dry and then wet in order to remove the layer of dust, some of which was several millimeters thick. In the next step, defects were added to the mosaic picture and slight retouching carried out, explained the restorer. These measures also made it possible to bring the color brilliance of the pictures to the fore again. In the area of the brick surface, clay compresses were used in part to reduce salt damage. The other six chapels are to follow the example of the first chapel.
It is planned to restore these in the next three to four years in line with the symmetrical sequence of the chapel wreath and with this sequence also taking into account the iconographic program of the Mariendom.
The chapels in the cathedral
The six smaller chapels, each with an altar, and the votive chapel with a main altar and two side altars form the oldest part of the Mariendom in Linz. They were built between 1862 and 1874. The mosaic windows, which are up to twelve meters high and were designed by Tyrolean glass painting Neuhauser & Co. from Innsbruck, are particularly impressive. The votive chapel was inaugurated on September 29, 1869 by Bishop Rudigier. Anton Bruckner composed the famous Mass in E minor for this.
Source: Nachrichten
