Thanks to the generous contribution of Friends of Florence, the Uffizi Gallery recently unveiled the newly restored Medici Vase, a permanent piece in the museum’s collection since 1780. One of the largest and rarest surviving examples of Neo-Attic sculpture, the Vase has been subject to many restorations over the years, including the integration of fragments to fill the gaps that have appeared over the centuries. The extensive discoloring of the modern additions, which were masked in an effort to unify the immensely fragmented work, was addressed during the restoration, ensuring greater uniformity and legibility.
ph. Samantha Vaughn
The intervention also allowed for researchers to analyze the Medici Vase in an unprecedented manner, including a 3D mapping that made it possible to better verify the many layers of past interventions and to distinguish, with clarity, the original fragments from later integrations. The results showed that a surprising 90% of the piece is in fact original, dating to the 1st century BCE.
The Vase first appeared in the Villa Medici inventory in the late 1500s, but it was moved to the Uffizi Gallery during the late 18th-century reign of Leopold II. The bell-shaped krater towers nearly 2 meters high and is decorated with a stunning frieze said to depict the Athenians gathered at Delphi before the Trojan War, as well as satyrs and a female figure, likely Iphigenia, seated below a statue of Artemis.
The Medici Vase can be seen on display in the Verone, towards the end of the visit.
