Describe the characteristics of the Restorations in Ecce Homo (Caravaggio)'s History.
Examinations after its rediscovery in 1953 revealed the painting was restored at some point during the eighteenth century. It was restored for its second time in 1954, by Pico Cellini in Rome. The painting was in very poor condition by 1954 and during the relining process Cellini had to add several inches of new cloth to all four edges of the canvas. The restoration is now thought to have been "particularly invasive" and may have gone so far as to have had "the addition of superficial shadows", leaving it "difficult to judge with certainty the autography of the underlying painting". This has led to many doubts about the autograph status of the work or even it could be attributed to Caravaggio.The most recent restoration was carried out in Genoa by Cristina Bonavera Parodi in 2003. During this operation a full examination of the painting was made with new techniques including X-rays, Infrared reflectography, UV light reader, and optical microscopy. The curator who oversaw the process, Anna Orlando, believes a clear attribution of the work can be made to Caravaggio.
Genoa Cara relining process Caravaggio