Restoration
Ongoing commitment to preserving the Mammoth
1954-1960
At the time of discovery, the bones were fragile: they were cleaned of sand, strengthened with sodium silicate and encased in fabric and plaster so that they could be safely transported (149 bones divided into 8 crates) to the Institute of Geology and Paleontology of the University of Rome. As the skull bones were weak, it was decided to saw off the tusk. These procedures, carried out by A. M. Maccagno, allowed the skeleton to be preserved. The restoration work took a year and a half: the bones were reinforced with iron pipes, the missing parts reconstructed.
Photographic documentation taken from Angiola Maria Maccagno, Relazione sulla tecnica di scavo, restauro e montaggio dell’elefante fossile rinvenuto presso l’Aquila, in “Annuario delle Istituzioni di Alta Cultura sorte nella città dell’Aquila dal 1918 al 1957”, Vol. II., Istituto Grafico Tiberino, Roma 1958.
1987-1991
Some fragments of the skeleton became detached in the late 1980s; the bones were turning to dust inside. Further restoration work was carried out on the skeleton: skull and pelvis were restored on site, the rest of the bones at the Museum of Geology and Palaeontology of the University of Florence. It was decided to reconstruct part of the mandible and to insert a lighter copy of the tusk, made of epoxy resins and expanded polyurethane, while the original was displayed on the platform.
2013-2015
The 2009 earthquake did not seriously damage the skeleton, but some bones showed lesions. The restoration, financed by the Guardia di Finanza, was carried out directly in situ in the Bastion of the Forte Spagnolo, with the dismantling of the skeleton, the placing of the skull and pelvis on steel supports, the cleaning and removal of the old protective coating and excess filler from the joints between the original bones and the reconstructed ones, a new surface and structural consolidation, and the filling and colouring of the reconstructed parts.
The restoration allowed further investigation, as well as the rectification of some previous reconstructions – particularly for the skull, where portions of the original bone that could not be seen because they were covered by the integrations of the 1950s and some lesions were studied. The reconstructed part of the skull was remodelled more accurately according to the new findings.
Study of the deformations and vibrations of the skeleton and supporting structure due to seismic shocks. The deformed outline is shown in dark grey.
