Opificio delle Pietre Dure (OPD), IT

About
The Opificio delle Pietre Dure is part of the Italian Ministry of Heritage and Cultural Activities. It was founded in 1588 by the Grand Duke Ferdinando I de’ Medici and its name, “workshop for semi-precious stones”, is appropriate to this unique institute, which combines a long and distinguished tradition with a modern and articulate activity. With its school and its scientific laboratory, the Institute is one of the foremost in Europe.
It employs restorers, art historians, archaeologists, scientists, laboratory technicians and administrators. The overall number of employees is 140 of which 9 conservation scientists. The operative departments are the Conservation and the Scientific Laboratories. The restoration interventions occur mainly inside the OPD laboratories. Restorers, art historians and conservation scientists from OPD operate as well in restoration sites (i.e. in the case of mural paintings or archaeological areas) either in Italy or abroad. OPD has also an important school for conservation, open to European citizens and foreigners. OPD Scientific laboratory provides the application of some portable non-destructive techniques in order to carry out in-situ scientific research on materials of artworks.

Relevant experience & role:
OPD has responsibility at a national level of the safeguard and conservation of cultural heritage. It interfaces to relevant European museums too. The high competences of OPD in the field of methods and materials for conservation/restoration are well known in Europe. The typical users of the services offered by OPD are conservation scientists or conservators/restorers who are developing research to deepen the knowledge on the nature and state of conservation of relevant artefacts and/or to determine the optimal modality/condition for a programmed conservative intervention.
Recent restorations and relative scientific studies have been carried out on painted Crucifix at Rosano Monastery (sec. XII), on Agnolo Gaddi frescoes at S. Croce Church, on marble statues at Orsanmichele church in Florence, Madonna del Cardellino by Raphael, and other masterpieces of Botticelli, Beato Angelico, Leonardo, Antonello da Messina, and others.
OPD participates to coordination (development of best practices and protocols; training on stone conservation), transnational access and research (integration of the physical access to ARCHLAB; development of new portable instrumentation and innovative methodologies for in-situ diagnostics and conservation) activities

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