Material Authenticity in Conservation Theory

ABSTRACT. In September 1997 a strong earthquake shook the Italian regions of Umbria and Marche, in central Italy. The 13th century Basilica of San Francesco of Assisi was harmed, the precious frescos on its vault reduced to wreckage. The work of restoration began immediately. Hundreds of conservators scoured the rubble for remnants of the paintings. This painstaking work of retrieval led to the recovery of thousands of tiny fragments, most of which no bigger than a one-euro coin. Analysing the fragments and relocating them to their original position took years. In 2006, however, the restoration was finally completed. Though this is certainly a heartening story, it is also a surprising one in many respects. The question is, particularly, why the restorers put such effort to recollect the frescos’ original pieces, no matter how scattered and unrecognizable they were. In this paper I suggest that their reason for doing so was based on a widespread interest in art appreciation for what I call ‘material authenticity’. What is this interest from a philosophical point of view? And how does it affect decisions regarding conservation? My contention is that our concern for material authenticity, whilst culturally-dependent, is based on some deeply entrenched ideas we have about what artworks are ontologically. These ideas, placing great value on the substance of which artworks are physically composed, have informed conservation in the past, and despite recent challenges, continue to be the main principle behind conservation theory today