Simon Blackwood Fine Arts

Picture Restoration Scotland

Deposition from the Cross – a badly damaged painting



This is a copy made in 1565 of a painting by Daniele da Volterra, originally painted around 1541. It is a very famous portrayal of Christ descending from the cross, and was itself based on a drawing by Michaelangelo. It measures 57 inches by 85 inches. The frame is Victorian or perhaps even later.

Before it was sent for restoration it had been hanging in a church in Scotland where excessive damp and a leaking roof had caused untold damage over many unrecorded years.


Six stages in the process:

Inspection, making a plan

Removing the carpet tacks

The re-lining process

The cleaning process

The retouching process and final varnishing

The final state of the painting

Simon Blackwood Fine Arts, The Studio, Wells Old Lodge
Bedrule, Near Hawick, Roxburgh, Scotland TD9 8TD.
Telephone: 01450 870870 E-mail: simonblackwood@btconnect.com