International scientific conference and exhibition “Wooden Romanesque Doors of the Split Cathedral – Research, Conservation, and Protection”

Split, Museum of Fine Arts, May 8th 2018

As part of the European Year of Cultural Heritage, Croatian Conservation Institute and Institute of Art History – Cvito Fisković Centre organised the international scientific conference and exhibition “Wooden Romanesque Doors of the Split Cathedral – Research, Conservation, and Protection”.

The conference and the exhibition are a conclusion of a four-year project of the Croatian Conservation Institute consisting of multidisciplinary research, conservation, and protection of one of the most exceptional medieval works of art in Europe – the wooden doors of the Split Cathedral made by Andrija Buvina in 1214.

The Doors

Mentioned activities tell a story about the creation of the door, its original appearance (presented as a virtual 3D reconstruction) and subsequent transformations, the radical 1908 restoration (when the original polychromy and numerous door segments were removed and new ones added), and of medieval woodworking techniques and tools.

The Conference

The extensive project researching the technology of the door's creation, with the participation of more than 30 experts of various professions from Croatia and abroad, and the conservation and restoration that was carried out, have produced an unexpected amount of new data. Amongst other, results of different analyses and virtual reconstructions have opened possibilities of new interpretations, which until now have only been partially presented to the public.