Italian museums reopen restored medieval paintings after years in storage

In Castellina in Chianti, Tuscany, three 14th‑ and 15th‑century tempera paintings – a Madonna and Child with saints, another Madonna with saints, and a 13th‑century Crucifixion – were returned to the Rocca museum after 25 years in the Siena Pinacoteca. The works were restored over five months by conservator Monica Mancini and art historians Nicoletta Matteuzzi, Lucia Bencistà and Annarubina Cateni, and will be featured in the exhibition “Ritorno nel Chianti. Dipinti del XIV e XV secolo.”

In Orte, Lazio, the four panels of “Storie della vita di Sant’Egidio” by Cola da Orte, originally part of a 15th‑century shrine, have been restored by the University of Tuscia’s restoration laboratory under professors Lorenza D’Alessandro and Giorgio Capriotti. After a staged restoration completed in 2022, the panels are now on display again at the Museo d’Arte Sacra, highlighting the saint’s life in eleven narrative scenes.