Some can be so large as to be disturbing the eye perceives something different from what was originally there and this also has an emotional impact. In this type of work, shortcomings of varying degrees always arise. What is the value of exposing a flaw in a restoration? That is why the stability of the building is fundamentally important, although this may sometimes be at odds with some principles of restoration. You have to consider that now we are in an emergency situation and it is difficult for us to meet around the church as we used to do churches are very important for us, especially for the elderly. How can you take care of the symbolic aspect while also safeguarding a monumentвЂ™s historical and aesthetic value? Restoration can also be understood as repairing the relationships that bind people to a place. I think this choice is beneficial for the present. Once we are back in the church, we should all feel safe. Antonio Paolucci, the Heritage Office, the Ministry and the Church decided that the Basilica should be rebuilt where it was and as it was, and that safety should be the first priority.

It is my rebirth.Дoes the way you choose to work on the marks left by time reflect more a view of the present or the past? Today I am working to return the Basilica to our community, and this is the most important thing for me. This image seems to suggest that all is not as lost as it seems. Since I had to complete the restoration of the altar, I thought I could put it in the excavations temporarily, and it was very fortunate that I did that, because the painting would have gone lost if I hadn't. It is something similar to resurrection, a concept deeply connected to this church.ДЇew months before the earthquake, I had been commissioned to restore a 16th-century painting of the resurrection of Lazarus.

Recovering these stones makes me think that life can take a lot from us but it may also let us find it again. What does this reconstruction project mean to you personally and emotionally? So, even if you have a clear target, you may have to change your plans and take a different route. There is always a plan behind every restoration, but if something does not fit, it has to be changed. My task is to re-create, and of course this involves a certain amount of creativity, especially because in the context of projects like this one many uncertainties can arise as the works progress. Overall, would you call this вЂњcreativeвЂќ or вЂњre-creativeвЂќ restoration? I supply the specific stone material that is requested: I am practically a sort of warehouse keeper for the Basilica (laughs). We will then send to the Basilica the ones that are necessary depending on the ongoing of works, starting from the crypt (where we already have three columns and four capitals), we will continue in the same way for the other sections until we reach the bell tower. Once the cataloguing is completed, the recovered stones will be reassembled and we will put them back in their original position. Among them, decorative stone elements from the Romanesque and Gothic periods, unknown treasures from the old Basilica, unexpectedly emerged.ДЄt present, we have catalogued as many as 4,838 stones, and we know what they are and where they are. You must select the stones according to their type, from plinths and capitals, not to mention the various materials that were used for reconstruction over the centuries following the earthquakes that hit the town repeatedly. As a result of the collapse, many stones shatter and therefore you often have to look for the various pieces on different pallets to reassemble them. The bell tower collapsed on the roof, which broke through the floor of the presbytery and ended up inside the crypt.ДЄfter securing the church, we started recovering the stones. Only the faГ§ade of the Basilica has remained standing. The first phase of the work, which is currently underway, consists of selecting and cataloguing the stones. In the spring of 2021, I joined a team hired by Eni to carry out the selection and cataloguing of stone materials. For all of us, the Basilica is a key element of our society.

Who could have imagined that within a few months it would all collapse? It is a situation in which there is a total loss of points of reference and of identity.

Before the 2016 earthquake, I was working inside the Basilica to restore the altars that had been built after the 1703 earthquake, one of the most devastating our town had ever experienced. As a citizen of Norcia, how did you feel when you were chosen to work on the reconstruction of the Basilica?

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