The female statue, known as the Zitella (the Spinster), placed on a high base adorning a small fountain in the Boschetto of the Vatican Gardens, has been there since the time of Pope Pius IV (1559–1565). The statue depicts a veiled woman adorned with a diadem, seated on a high-backed chair, leaning on it with her left arm. Her right arm adheres against her torso and she holds a flap of the cloak covering her head with her hand. The statue’s current appearance is the result of a restoration carried out by one of the many sculptors who worked on the Vatican Belvedere and the decorations of Pius IV’s exquisite Casina stucture in the gardens, directed by the Neapolitan architect Pirro Ligorio. Using a valuable first-century A.D. sculpture made of Pentelic marble, possibly depicting a Muse, the anonymous sixteenth-century artist skillfully integrated the head and arms, partly modifying the drapery to create a more chaste version of Vesta, the ancient Roman goddess of the domestic hearth. This splendid sculpture was believed to be fully original until a few decades ago, when cross- studying iconographic and documentary sources revealed that the Roman statue, without the additions, had been in the Belvedere since 1532–33. While the location of its archeological discovery remains unknown, the distinctive carving on the back suggests that it was part of the pediment decoration of an ancient Roman temple.

Total Cost: € 186.586,00 ($ 219,537.09)

• Disassembly of the fountain mouth with lion protome and removal of the grout between the statue and the base
• Moving the statue to the laboratory
• Cleaning the statue, removing deposits and fungal formations, and applying a biocide treatment
• Disassembly of the statue’s moving parts and replacement of pins
• Localized cleaning and adjustment of patinas on the statue’s surface
• Reconstruction of fillings and color balancing
• Removal of basement limestone formations in the gardens
• Reconstruction of gaps in the fountain catch basin
• Moving to the new exhibition site at the first wall of the Chiaramonti Gallery
• Fabrication of the marble copy from a 3D model by a specialized firm, with DL supervision during the various execution phases
• Placement of the marble copy to adorn the fountain in the gardens, replacing the original
• Relocating the lion protome and reconstructing the plasterwork to restore the fountain