The restoration project of the statue marble base with dedication to Gabinius Vettius Probianus located on the right side of the entrance to the Basilica Julia, is part of the thesis work of Istituto Centrale per il Restauro student Yi Rong, which will take place in situ.

The work will be divided into two parts, restoration of the artifact and experimentation with methods for removing residual staining induced by biocide treatments on biological patinas.

• Base for statue re-erected by Gabinius Vettius Probianus, prefect of the City. Rome, Forum. 377.

   

  INSCRIPTION

  In eight lines. Letter height 5.5-6 cm.

   

  Gabinius Vettius / Probianus, v(ir) c(larissimus), praef(ectus) / urbi, / statuam fatali neces/sitate conlabsam, /(6) celeberrimo urbis / loco adhibita diligen/tia reparavit.

  ‘Gabinius Vettius Probianus, of clarissimus rank, prefect of the City, diligently restored [this] statue, fallen in a fatal calamity, brought to the most frequented location of the city.’

   

   

  DESCRIPTION

  White marble base, 140 x 93 x 77, the base was broken into pieces and reassembled with clamps and cement. All four sides are preserved.
  The left side suggests that it was smoothly finished on all sides.
  The epigraphic field measures 92 x 71 cm. It is rough, irregular and deep, indicating that itwas cut back for re-use.
  The front of the base was framed by mouldings on all sides, but these were chiselled out at the timeof re-use. The right side was decorated with a patera.
  The left side is badly damaged. It has three modern dowel holes, and maybe some pieces used in the reconstruction of the base are extraneous.
  The top is largely covered by another base. It has a round dowerl hole carved for the removal of metal.

   

  PROVENANCE AND LOCATION

  The base was found in the Roman Forum, in front ot Temple of Antoninus and Faustina; it is still in the Roman Forum, in front of the Basilica Iulia.

   

  SUBJECT

  The subject of the statue is not identified by the inscription.
  We are told that it a statue that had been damaged by a ‘fatal calamity’ was restored and moved to a most frequented location.
  Our Gabinius Vettius Probianus was almost certainly the Probianus prefect of the City in 377.
  It has been suggested that he might have been the Probianus who was urban prefect in 416. However, it makes more sense to identify this later prefect with Rufius Probianus, vicarius urbis Romae in the early 5th century.

   

• Conservation status

  The white marble base in question is composed of several fragments assembled in previous restoration interventions by means of mortars, grapples and copper alloy pins.
  The artifact has several missing and the entire stone surface appears eroded with a considerable increase in its surface porosity.
  The degraded state of preservation of the marble surface and the environment in which the work is placed areprimary cause of the extensive colonization and growth of biodeteriogenic species.

• Restoration intervention

  The restoration intervention will involve several operational steps, such as the removal of inconsistent and coherent, biocidetreatment, extraction of pigments produced by microorganisms, and removal of old mortars and grouts.
  The work will continue with localized consolidation actions where necessary. All metal elements will be treated with corrosion inhibitors and protected with specific products. Bonding of detached fragments will be carried out if necessary.
  The restoration of the artifact will be concluded by repairing with hydraulic lime-based mortars the fracture lines present on the work and reconstructible deficiencies.
  Upon completion of the restoration work a product will be applied to the entire marble base to protect the surfaces from the activation of new degradation processes.

• Experimental activities

  During the restoration work, the issue of removing residual coloration induced by biocide treatments applied to the marble surface of the artifact.
  The operations preparatory to the comparison of the effectiveness of pigment removal methodologies, concerns the characterization of the substrate, the recognition of biodeteriogenic species and the determination of the pigments released by them.
  After all the necessary characterizations, biocides used commonly in restoration, and then on these same areas will be tested the action of various solvents ketone-based organics to compare their extraction abilities.