A bust of Medusa by the Baroque master Gian Lorenzo Bernini went on public display at the Capitoline Museum's Sala degli Arazzi on Thursday, having been restored to its original glory.
The four-month restoration scraped off layers of built-up dirt from the marble sculpture. It also removed harmful chemicals applied during past renovation operations, which had damaged at least six serpents and produced hairline cracks in the Medusa's face.
In addition, the restoration process revealed a rare patina technique used by Bernini, which creates a striking chiaroscuro effect.
"Only he could have created a patina like this," said Elena Bianca Di Gioia, who oversaw the restoration.
"No one else could have produced such a unique and intimate effect".
Di Gioia believes Bernini applied the patina to exploit the lighting in the sculpture's original location.
The sculpture was created by Bernini between 1644 and 1648 for a private patron, and was donated to the Campidoglio in 1731.
It bears only the inscription of the donor, Francesco Bichi of the Marche, and the phrase that the work is "the glory of a highly celebrated sculptor".
The statue was positioned in the Sala delle Oche, where it has remained ever since.
For the next month, it will go on public display in the Sala degli Arazzi, allowing visitors to admire it from all angles.
After Christmas, it will return to its 18th-century pedestal in its traditional location, in which only the front part is visible.
Medusa, a snake-headed gorgon whose gaze could turn people to stone, has been a common subject for artists since the times of Ancient Greece.
But according to Di Gioia, Bernini veered away from the traditionally terrifying figure of myth to create a more tragic and personal vision.
Created during a bleak period in which he himself was out of favour at the papal court, the figure represents "the artist's personal reflection" on his role and on sculpture in general, said Di Gioia.
