Bartlett Arch Mural above St. Paul Preaching at Athens (2020)

The Frederic Clay Bartlett mural in the southeast corner of the balcony was cleaned in July. In addition to the expected consolidation of underlying plaster and removal of 100 years of dirt from figures and flora in the mural, there were some surprises. During the course of cleaning some past restorations were discovered. High on the West wall, an angel on plaster had been completely repainted in oils. There are no known records of who completed the restoration or when. Pomegranate motifs directly facing the restored angel were similarly discovered to have been restored. In both cases, repainting was mismatched and rendered crudely. An adjacent composition was traced and transferred to the previously restored/repainted areas. Wherever the tracings overlapped with undamaged areas, they matched precisely. Thanks to a generous grant from The Service Club of Chicago for supporting this work.