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Article: With 8,100 sculptures, 5,000 pieces of furniture, 2,150 windows and 67 staircases, the [pounds sterling]400m restoration of Versailles will take 17 years in total. But as these stunning photographs show, it will be worth the wait; RESTORATION.
- Article from:
- Daily Mail (London)
- Article date:
- January 12, 2006
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Solo Syndication Limited. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: JANE FRYER
LOUIS XIV would have been thrilled. Dripping with gold leaf and awash with gilded cherubs, frescoes, marble and 358 mirrors, the glittering Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles has been restored to its former - if over the top - splendour.
Gone are umpteen layers of dust, grime and the thick, sticky paint used in a botched restoration half a century ago. Now, the lapis lazuli used to decorate the vast, vaulted ceiling blazes bright blue once more.
A formerly dark patch of one fresco, The Acquisition Of Dunkerque, painted in 1662, has turned a light cornflower, revealing a previously obscured human face. Meanwhile ...