Dirty Angel
Restoring a Marble Holy Water Font
Joey Marcella
Mario & Son
On the Gonzaga University campus, there kneels a lonely angel, offering holy water at the entrance of St. Aloysius cathedral.
A hundred years of dipping fingers in the water, leaving behind dirt, oil, hand lotions and the like, contaminated the old, unsealed sculpture to the point of needing some serious TLC.
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Above, Left: Among other problems, the font had deep scratches and embedded stains. Above, Right: We used a clay poultice to draw out deep-set stains that refinishing could not remove without reshaping. |
The base of the sculpture, a marble-clad wooden structure, had also deteriorated to the point of not only being unsightly, but dangerous considering the amount of weight it was now straining to support.
Enter Mario & Son...
Some parts of the sculpture were so badly stained that even a vigorous cleaning couldn’t improve it.
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Above, Left: The chips on the base of the sculpture were especially noticeable, but fixable. Above, Right: We engineered and manufactured the new base so that it “floats” on casters, along with a brake to keep it from rolling once in place. |
Sections like the clam-shaped bowl had to be completely re-sculpted in order to get past the deep scratches and embedded stains.
The years of grime and neglect had penetrated deep within the stone, and the sculpture was badly chipped as well, requiring repair and re-finishing of the entire piece.
The brilliant white of the Carrara marble reappeared as we re-abraded the surface. We even gave the angel a day at the “spa” for a facial of clay poultice in an attempt to draw out the remaining deep-set stains that were beyond the reach of refinishing. Further sanding of the sculpture would have begun to alter the original appearance.
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Above, Left: : the completed restoration, including the new, reinforced, floating base. Above, Right: Before restoration, showing the dramatic difference with the original, brilliant white Carrara revealed. |
We engineered and manufactured the new base so that it “floats” on casters, along with a brake to keep it from rolling once in place.
The brake is accessed by a removable, magnetic side panel, which will allow the option of rolling outdoors for a gentle pressure washing in the future, if needed.
A subtle cross with a design that coincides with the rest of the church was inlaid into the side panels because… well… it was added, because we could!
Once complete in the shop, the entire work was sealed thoroughly, and only awaited delivery back to the church.
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Above, Left: Before restoration Above, Right: The clam-shaped bowl was completely re-sculpted, to the exact proportions of the original, including sourced Carrara marble. |