Jean-François Cordet, Reeve of the Nord Region – Pas-de-Calais Picardie, Reeve of the Nord and Martine Aubry, Mayor of Lille, have confirmed Wednesday 30 March 2016 the deposit in July 2015 at the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille of four statues of the XVIth and XVIIth centuries, property of the French State. This deposit was made possible thanks to the donation to the State of Mr. Rault, owner of the land where the statues were buried.
Four statues discovered on occasion of an archaeological diagnosis
The statues were discovered during an archaeological diagnosis carried out in Orchies in March 2013 by the National Institute of Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) at the request of the Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (DRAC). These statues, especially those of Saint Mary Magdalene and Saint Agnes, are of major interest to the region because of their quality of execution, their state of conservation, and their discovery in archaeological context. If their origin remains unknown, it is possible that they were buried during the Revolution to save them from vandalism. They have thus spent more than two centuries hidden in the eyes of the public protected by a layer of land.
A spectacular restoration
The restoration of these works, covered with a land very adherent to the surface of the stone, is an indispensable prerequisite for the exhibition. Between November 2015 and January 2016, a study was conducted by two restorers of the tests to find the most effective way to clean them without risking damage. It also aimed to try to find the location of some broken fragments at the time of burial or discovery.At the end of the restoration, the works, freed from their gangue of earth, will be presented alongside the museum’s Flemish paintings and sculptures and will evoke the transition between medieval and Renaissance art.
This exceptional restoration will be the occasion for a first experience of collaborative sponsorship for SMEs-SMEs and liberal professions (from April to June 2016).
The sculptures of Orchies, from their discovery to their next development, thus testify to the collaboration of the institutions of the State and the city of Lille.