Extraordinary discovery in Rome: medieval fresco in excellent state of preservation found in the church of Sant'Alessio

In the church of St. Alexis on the Aventine Hill in Rome, a large medieval fresco has been unearthed depicting the saint together with the pilgrim Christ. The latter wears a purple cloak over the typical robes of a pilgrim and with his left hand points to Christ standing next to him.

The fresco is in an excellent state of preservation, despite having been hidden by a wall for nearly nine hundred years. Making this extraordinary discovery, starting with an ancient document and giving news of it to the general public after almost fifteen years of study, was art historian Claudia Viggiani, who toldAnsa, “An absolutely exceptional find also because of the very rare iconography of the two characters that can be recognized in the part of the painting that is visible at the moment, in all likelihood precisely Saint Alexis and the pilgrim Christ.”

Restorer Susanna Sarmati secured the rediscovered work with a project funded by the Special Superintendency of Rome led by Francesco Prosperetti. The fresco, which would date from the mid-12th century, was painted on a black background and appears within a polychrome frame of “exceptional refinement and colors that are still incredibly intact. In no medieval fresco has such a well-preserved frame ever been seen,” the restorer added.

Temporarily, the work measures 90 centimeters wide and more than 4 meters high, but hidden in the wall is another part of the fresco that the art historian wants to bring back to light, as surprises are still expected. Originally, the work was located on the church’s counter-façade. “Those who renovated the church in later centuries by walling up the counter-façade still took care to protect the fresco,” Sarmati said.

Update: Immediately after the news of the discovery came the controversy, however, as the Special Superintendence of Rome criticized Claudia Viggiani (who had discovered the work as early as 2005) for the way in which a fresco already known in scientific circles was presented to the press. Click here to read an in-depth report on the affair.

Source and image: Ansa

Extraordinary discovery in Rome: medieval fresco in excellent state of preservation found in the church of Sant'Alessio

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