Restoration
In January 2023, Ghella started a collaboration with the Soprintendenza capitolina for the restoration of the Loggia dei vini in Villa Borghese. The work involves three phases:
Restoration of the hemicycle vault
Plastering of external walls
Cleaning of the access stairs
Fresco Convito degli Dei (Archita Ricci)
Stucco cornice, ribs and sails. Already from a view from below, it can be observed that the decorative ensemble of the vault is in a very poor state of preservation. Prolonged water infiltration from the roofs has compromised both the wall support, with detachment of the plaster layers, and the paint film. In the frescoed oval depicting The Banquet of the Gods painted by Archita Ricci in the 17th century, one can observe large gaps in the decorated plasterwork, subsequently plastered over, evident problems with the lack of adhesion of the paint film, altered in colour tones and lacunae, and patinas of soluble salts. On visual inspection, the stucco frame, ribs and sails that make up the vaulting are also darkened by surface deposits and atmospheric pollution, and covered with non-original paint or varnish. The two-tone colouring of the ribs and sails, alternating between a warm and a cold colour, is most likely attributable to the 1960s intervention, as can be seen from the photos kept at the offices of the Municipal Superintendency relating to this intervention. It is indeed likely that the sails and ribs were originally decorated. This assertion is evidenced by a cleaning pad left over from the previous restoration in which traces of paint film are visible. It is conceivable that inside the sails, there were painted coats of arms of the Borghese family and Pope Paul V who commissioned the work.
Restoration of the Loggia_Exterior. Restoration of the Loggia_wine and travertine
The Wine Loggia has recently undergone restoration and renovation work on the roofing and rainwater channelling. The restoration work planned for the second lot includes work on the plasterwork of the internal pillars up to the impost of the vault, the wainscoting, the moulded cornices and travertine elements inside and outside, the tuff elements of the external face and the sub-arches.
Restoration of the terracotta floor in the hemicycle
All that remains of the old terracotta floor inside the hemicycle is a fragment of the original screed in which the design and size of the terracotta tiles were impressed. After the conservative restoration of this portion, it will be possible to integrate the entire floor with handmade terracotta tiles of the size of the original one.
Restoration of the internal perimeter wall
The non-original plasters of the perimeter wall that cover the tuffaceous masonry are in a very poor state of conservation, with evident detachments and falls. As far as documented by photos of previous interventions, these are not ancient plasters, but a new plastering probably dating back to the works that affected the monument in the 1960s. The work involves the removal and reconstruction of the plasterwork from scratch. Clearly, in the event that fragments are found or the presence of plasterwork, if not original then at least ancient, is verified, it will be preserved.