Index
34
Centre de Restauració de Béns Mobles de Catalunya
INNOVATION & RESEARCH
ALEIX BARBERÀ-GINÉ, SÍLVIA LLOBET, SÍLVIA MARÍN, JAIME SALGUERO and PERE ROVIRA
Previous studies for the conservation of the decorative mural paintings in the Roman villa of Els Munts. The conservation problem of mural paintings in situ in outdoor environments THE ROMAN VILLA OF ELS MUNTS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ROMAN SITES IN CATALONIA, and presents occupation structures ranging from the 1st century BC until the 7th century AD. This is a rich villa, profusely decorated with mosaics and mural paintings, intended for the leisure of the elites from the nearby capital of Tarraco. It consists of several sectors: the residential area itself (with rooms, triclinium, peristyle, etc.), the baths area, a garden area or hortus, a Mithraeum, an ambulacrum that connects the various sectors and an industrial area with several water tanks. The residential area, from the high imperial period, consisted of a large peristyle and a two-storey building, of which only the semi-underground or cryptoportico area has been partially preserved, formed by a corridor with annex rooms. This space houses the group of most important Roman mural paintings currently preserved in situ in Catalonia. Background Excavations of the villa’s residential area began in the 1990s, and this is when this group of mural paintings that decorate a wide long corridor and five of the cryptoportico annex rooms were discovered. During the excavation, and to protect the paintings, they were bevelled with various
RESCAT
types of mortars, and were protected by placing cloths adhered with resin, following common practice. Furthermore, and aware of the importance of the uncovered ensemble, a temporary cover was placed to protect it from rainfall. However, after a short time, important signs of deterioration began to appear, associated with the presence of soluble salts which, due to their disruptive action, were disintegrating both the mosaic and the mural paintings. On occasion, several restoration interventions have been carried out to stabilise the ensemble, but to date they have not been able to guarantee the conservation of the mural paintings or to stop their deterioration. At the end of 2018, in view of the pronounced and constant deterioration of the ensemble, the need arose to develop a project and prior studies that allow us to know the exact origin of the deterioration that affects the paintings, and suggest evidence-based solutions. This study has included a 3D survey, using photogrammetry of the whole ensemble; obtaining orthophotographs; making alteration maps; sample extraction and analysis (both of the paints and alteration indicators); cleaning tests; desalination tests and documentary research and cataloguing of previous interventions. The team of professionals who took part, under the guidance of the CRBMC, included: Aleix Barberà-Giné, M. José Gracia,
