RESTORING ST. MARK'S.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 23089, 5 March 1910, Page 2 (Supplement)

RESTORING ST. MARK'S.

The efforts tor- restore the campanile of bt. Marks and the ?Loggia di Sarisovino, in Venice, are -proving most successful. -The, campanile,' it will he remembered, f ?N some yeavs ago, in consequence of the . subsidence of the foundations, and the heavy madoniy completely shattered the Loggia di, Sansovinb, -with its wonderful, and priceless statuary and carvings. The campanile has been restored, as far as possible, to its original coiiditiori, arid the fcelfrjr, which had been prepared in sections, was expected to be placed in position last month. The , more,: delicate^ work of .the reconstniicrion- of , the. statuary has been proceeding rapidly in tlie hands of experts. The debris left after the disaster caused by the collapse of the oampartilewas all carefully collected and transported to the .Dogea^ Palace, where it was thoroughly examined and sifted Many portions of 'the. figures had been reduced tp dust, but every scrap Large enough to be of value for restoration purposes was set aside, and the larger portions were photographed ■. for the purpose of comparison? with' the ?recbrds of the original works. '' The statues, the ?Manerva, Apollo, Mercury ahd Peace, by Sahsovino, the artistic bronze gate by Antonio Gai, and the gilded terracotta gropp of the Madonna and Child of l S't. John, also by Sansovino, liave been restored with wonderful skill and fidelity. , Over 1600 fragments^ of the terra- j cotta. grotjp were- -found,-, and were , put together with great patience by Pietro Zei, of the Archaeological Museum of Florence. The orily parts of the Sansovino group still missing ate the head, shoulders, hips, and: part of. one of the arms of the figute. of St. John, and the toes of the';- left foot of the Virgin These portions were reduced to dust by the ocoident, ' arid ' canriot be replaced. Tlie magnifioenfc square of St. Marks is stated to have alinost resumed its old aspect. The authorities ofj Veriibe have taken 'special prebauitions to " ensure' that the? disaster' which befell the campanile shall not overtake any otlxer of. the historic buildings in the city.