Renaissance frescoes to be restored in €1 million scheme

A year-long €1 million restoration of the Farnese Gallery at Rome's Palazzo Farnese, home of the French embassy to Italy, will begin in March.

The 16th-century monumental fresco cycle "The Loves of the Gods" by Bolognese painter Annibale Carracci is to be cleaned and its extensive cracks filled.

The frescoes, which were painted for Cardinal Odoardo Farnese, are located in the building's west wing.

The project is being financed with €800,000 from the World Monuments Fund (WMF), a private non-profit organisation, and €200,000 from the Italian government.

Although the gallery has undergone several restorations, this is the first time that its side walls – rather than its vaulted ceiling – are being restored.