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FALVEY LIBRARY
FALVEY LIBRARY

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ABOUT


THE RESTORATION

Spanning 20 ft across and 12 ft high, "The Triumph of David" first arrived at
Villanova University in 1956 as part of a larger donation of artworks gifted by
the late Princess Eugenia Ruspoli. Due to the painting's complicated restoration
history, layers of overpaint and varnish coatings eventually degraded and
darkened, causing some to conclude that the painting was beyond repair. In 2013,
an interdisciplinary team of conservators, art historians, and scientists were
given the opportunity to revisit the work, conducting a preliminary examination
of the painting as well as scientific analysis of the materials used to create
the large oil on canvas. From 2013 to 2015, conservators slowly revealed the
brilliant colors used by the artist that had been hidden beneath several layers
of grime, discolored varnish, and overpaint.

A comprehensive technical study of the "The Triumph of David" revealed a close
connection between the pigments and layering structure found in paintings
associated with Pietro da Cortona's circle. Cortona's vast workshop had a
significant impact on painters working throughout the seventeenth century. While
the technical information suggests the painting was likely painted during this
period, other details (such as the weave-structure of the canvas; Cortona's
large-format paintings were typically on canvas with a coarser weave) indicate
that the painting may have been produced by a painter who was closely affiliated
with Cortona and the artist's oeuvre. During the 2013-15 conservation treatment,
the team was able to trace the painting back to Princess Ruspoli's Castle in the
town of Nemi (located just outside of Rome) before it was shipped to the United
States before the outbreak of World War Two. The painting's provenance is in
need of further investigation and we hope that the information presented here
will inspire future research relating to the mystery surrounding "The Triumph of
David."


ABOUT


THE WEBSITE

Welcome to our website detailing the conservation treatment of Pietro da
Cortona's "Triumph of David", a large-scale oil on canvas that currently resides
in "Old Falvey," Falvey Library's original wing.

This website features an interactive timeline, detailing a month-by-month
examination of the painting's conservation progress. The system takes advantage
of sophisticated tools that allow us to superimpose hi-resolution images in
context of the larger painting.


SCIENTIFIC ANALYSIS


AND EXAMINATION

Throughout the 2013-15 conservation treatment "The Triumph of David," several
methods of non-destructive imaging and analytical techniques were employed.
X-radiography and Infrared Reflectography helped the team to identify
compositional changes (e.g. hidden figures, costume adjustments) as well as
changes imposed during previous restoration campaigns. X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF)
was also performed on several locations of the composition, allowing for
preliminary pigment characterization both before and after the removal of
unoriginal overpaint and degraded varnishes. The original stratigraphy of the
painting (the paint and ground layers) were studied using Cross-sectional
Microscopy. A number of microscopic paint samples were collected along the edges
of existing cracks or losses and examined with visible and ultraviolet light
under high magnification. Using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM-EDS), paint
cross-sections also helped to inform the conservation treatment by identifying
anachronistic pigments (e.g. zinc white) in degraded layers of overpaint.