Palace of Caserta, the Saletta del Calapranzo will be visible again

The Bourbon Dining Room at the Reggia di Caserta, one of the back rooms of the Autumn Room, will once again be visible to the public.

In fact, in order to restore dignity to some rooms of the Reggia that have been closed for years and used as a storage room, cleaning, rearrangement and care and a series of checks related to an old fire extinguishing system have been carried out in recent months. The Saletta del Calapranzo had been obstructed for decades by a fire extinguishing system that never went into operation.

After considering that the fire extinguishing system was in disuse and verifying that it was totally obsolete and impossible to proceed with a functional retrofit, its removal was ordered. In the course of the work to remove the massive pipes and their electrical network, it was found that the device, which runs on argon gas, never went into operation. Its installation at the time, however, caused extensive damage to the walls, in which large holes were drilled. The pipes covered an entire wall.

The access door to the calapranzo for the rulers’ food (to which the salatta was named) was located behind the pipeline. This was a conveyance system serving the Autumn Room, frescoed by Antonio De Dominicis, where privileged guests could be present at the king and queen’s meals and sometimes participate in them.

The door to the food rack and a prototype floor indicator have returned to view; however, the mechanism inside is no longer present. Work is currently underway to restore the entire room, to restore both the part of the wall surface and the iron gate that enclosed the facility. The marble frame of the door also has gaps. The pictorial film will be consolidated and the plaster detachments will be veiled to continue with depth injections, and cleaning will be carried out with sponges on the plaster, with alcohol-based solvents on the decorated parts. All cracks on the doors, masonry and plaster surfaces will then be grouted. Pictorial integration will be carried out, with reconstruction of missing areas of the decoration and gold leaf preparation of the gaps. Finally, cracks on the marble frame will be filled in and the terracotta floor will be cleaned, also with application of protective wax.

Upon completion of the work, the room will be visible to the public along the museum route of the Royal Apartments.

Pictured is the Autumn Room. Ph.Credit Reggia di Caserta

Palace of Caserta, the Saletta del Calapranzo will be visible again

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