The painting "The Appearance of the Apostles Peter and Paul before Christ" has been recreated

The reconstruction of the painting on the eastern facade of the Peter and Paul Cathedral "The Appearance of the Apostles Peter and Paul before Christ", which became the final stage of the restoration of the facades of the temple, has been completed.

At the end of December 2013, the reconstruction of the painting on the eastern facade of the Peter and Paul Cathedral "The Appearance of the Apostles Peter and Paul before Christ" was completed, which became the final stage of the restoration of the facades of the temple. Almost lost by the beginning of the XXI century, the painting returned to its historical place. Now, many decades later, St. Petersburg residents and guests of the city can see the completed architectural and artistic image of the cathedral as its creators conceived it. In 1730, A. Matveev and A. Zakharov placed on the eastern facade of the cathedral an oil painting on a copper plaque, "The Appearance of the Apostles Peter and Paul before Christ". By the middle of the XIX century, there was a need to replace it. In 1858-1860 (during the large-scale reconstruction of the spire and restoration of the facades of the cathedral), a new painting made in oil on dry plaster by academician P.

Titov appeared on the eastern facade of the temple. Over time, the colorful layer of the painting "burned out from time to time and crumbled in places." Its restoration in 1873 was carried out by the artist J. Boldini. However, by the beginning of the twentieth century, there was again a need for a complete reconstruction of the image. In 1908, the composition "The Appearance of the Apostles Peter and Paul before Christ" was re-painted by an unknown artist. More than 100 years have passed since then. The painting was restored several times (in 1952, 1957, 1963): restorers carried out work on clearing the painting, strengthening the soil and the paint layer with toning of large losses, protecting the surface with a coating varnish with the introduction of wax and paraffin coating. In 2003, during the restoration of the facades of the cathedral, scaffolding was erected and restorers were able to examine the painting. They stated that the painting layer crumbled almost completely, the remnants of the pigment were only partially preserved. It was decided to recreate the painting. The technique of oil painting on dry plaster, used to create this panel since the middle of the XIX century, has proved its unsuitability. Its use did not guarantee the safety of the paint layer for a long time. Therefore, in 2004, the KGIOP approved the method of recreating the pictorial panel "The Appearance of the Apostles Peter and Paul before Christ" with silicate paints. Tracing papers were removed from the preserved fragments of the painting. Also , a sketch of the painting preserved in the Russian State Historical Archive was used for the work .Titov (1859) and a fixation drawing of the eastern facade of the cathedral with a painting by V.Kuroyedov (1860). In 2013, at the expense of the State Museum of the History of St. Petersburg, the artist I.V.Bolotov first created a sketch and cardboard of the painting "The Appearance of Peter and Paul before Christ", and then painted on the facade of the cathedral.

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