This project consists of the restoration of a group of liturgical objects, formerly used in the rite of the Mass and on show in the collection of the Museum of Sacred Art.

The first of these objects is a rayed monstrance in pink marble (a specific kind of marble which is from Sicily) with applications in embossed bronze, chased and gilded. 

This object is a refined product of a Roman workshop dating back to the late 18^th and early 19^th Century. It is completed in the shape of a cross decorated with precious stones like jasper, agate and carnelian. In the centre is located a circular transparent window for Eucharistic adoration, made of rock crystal surrounded by gems and marked down by a half-moon shaped decoration. 

Objects like this monstrance originate from the dogmatic concept of the transubstantiation, which occurs during the liturgy of the Mass, when, by virtue of divine intervention, the words of blessing spoken by the priest mutate the pieces of bread and the wine into the real body and real blood of Christ. The corresponding liturgical moment is called consecration.  However, objects like this one were used outside of the context of the celebration, especially for exposition during processions or for showing the consecrated host to the faithful. The monstrance was previously located in the Sacristy of the Sistine Chapel and it is traditionally attributed to Luigi Valadier (1726-1785), the greatest silversmith of the Neoclassical period in Rome.

The second part of this restoration project consists of three more objects recently acquired by the Decorative Arts Department, which come from a private collection in Florence. The first two are also radial monstrances and intended for Eucharistic adoration. The third is a censer for burning incense, a symbol of the offer acceptable to God. The priest customarily sprinkles the incense on the altar and the cross at the beginning of the liturgy, during the liturgical Gospels and the proclamation of the Gospel (but also the dead at funerals and the audience in certain parts of the Mass). The first monstrance is made in embossed copper, engraved and gilded with an apical cross connected to the stem by the figure of a cherub. It dates back to Pope Paul III (Farnese, 1534-1549), as evidenced by the words "THIS CUP WAS DONE AT THE TIME OF POPE PAUL III 153 ... (?)". There is also a Latin inscription referring to the Virgin Mary located at the top node of the stem (" SUPER OMNES SPECIOSA") and one on the lower part below ("DE LA CO[M]PAGNIA DI CORPO CRISTI "). These inscriptions in Latin link the object to the Marian cult in Rome. Perhaps these objects were both donated to a church dedicated to the Virgin.

The second monstrance was completed in 1770, and is made of silver and brass embossed with gilding (the radial and the base), along with a stem terminating in a pair of angels resting on a globe in the act of showing the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Both the decorative motifs of the radial in the form of grapes and wheat, and the insert in relief between the nodes, refer to the Eucharistic devotion of the Sacred Heart. This is linked to the mystical visions of Santa Maria Marguerite Alacoque (1647-1690) proposed to the cult of the Congregation of Rites in 1765 and confirmed by Pope Pius VI in 1794. A famous example of the divulgation of the cult of the Sacred Heart is a painting by Pompeo Batoni with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, today, in the church of the Jesuits in Rome (ca 1760).

The censer dates back to the end of the 1700’s. It was completed with a circular silver foot and the suspension chain. It is clearly a product of a Neoclassical workshop from the late 18^th Century, but it is already affected by the regular distribution of the volumes which characterized the artifacts of the next century. Although the author of this beautiful object has not been identified, the restoration will allow a better recognition of the name of the silver company which provided material for the artist, thus leading to a possible identification of the author.

The surface of these objects was completely covered with dust and bi-products of the metal corrosion. There were also generalized small abrasions.

• Cleaning with immersion in Salts of Rochelles 
• Washing with de-ionized water
• Systematic cleaning of all the surfaces
• Chemical cleaning of the golden, copper, silver parts
• Accurate cleaning of gems, hard stones and crystal
• Stabilization of the residual products of corrosion
• Consolidation of possible small fractures 
• Protective final varnish
• Photographic documentation