As reported by the Institute for Conservation and Restoration, a 13th-century icon of the Madonna di Sant’Alessio is again shining in the Rectory Church of Saints Boniface and Alexius on Rome’s Aventine Hill following restoration work.
Experts recovered the golden-brown tones of the flesh and clothes, as well as a crown featuring precious stones. The three-year long restoration helped study the style of the icon and compare it with similar versions of the Madonna in other Rome churches.
It represented the idea of the Madonna interceding for the faithful, widespread in Rome in Medieval times. It depicts the Madonna alone, without the Christ Child, and she watches the observer slightly turned to the right, holding her right hand raised, while the left is pressed against her chest to indicate that the Virgin intercedes for all those who turn to her. The image was also venerated with the name of ‘Advocata’ to express her role as mediator between God and humanity.
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