A massive restoration has begun on the stunning 13th-century mosaic that adorns the inside of the dome of the Baptistery of San Giovanni in Florence, Italy. A comprehensive restoration of the medieval structure began in 2014 and should be completed in 2028. At the previous stage, specialists restored the mosaic images covering the walls of the room.
The mosaic was created from drawings prepared by several Florentine painters, including Cimabue (Chenni di Pepo) and Coppo di Marcovaldo. The main theme of the work was the Last Judgment. The figure of Jesus Christ rises in the center, angels, demons, souls of people lined up on both sides, characters from the Old and New Testaments are also depicted.
The first to lay out the mosaic in 1225 was the Franciscan monk Jacob, followed by other masters, including those who arrived from other regions of Italy. The creation of the masterpiece lasted for about a century, some details were added after 1300. The total area of the dome decorated with mosaics is approximately 1,000 square meters. The work consists of 10 million tiles 5–20 mm in size.
In the past centuries, the dome was repeatedly restored, sometimes attempts to restore the composition caused damage to the picture. So, in 1819, a large fragment of the mosaic that had broken off had to be reattached. Some sections proved difficult to work with due to damage to the roof, which was repaired only in 2015.
During the restoration, only those materials that existed at the time of the creation of the mosaic will be used. For work, they built scaffolding with a ladder, accessible not only to workers, but also to visitors. It is planned to conduct special excursions with the opportunity to view the composition up close.
