Siena Cathedral completes the restoration of its historic marble pavement

Siena (Italy), Jun 26 (EFE) - A couple of times a year, the cathedral of the Italian city of Siena (north) removes the carpet that protects and hides its impressive pavement, a large 'puzzle' with dozens of stone 'vignettes' that tell stories, wars and ancient beliefs, now visible again to the surprise of the visitor.

CAMERA: DANIEL CÁCERES

FOOTAGE OF THE RECENTLY RESTORED PAVEMENT OF THE CATHEDRAL OF SIENA, ITALY.

SOUNDBITES IN ITALIAN BY THE RECTOR OF THE CATHEDRAL OF SIENA, GIOBANNI MINUCCI.

TRANSLATION:

Giovanni Minucci, rector of the Cathedral of Siena:

1. "The floor is ancient because it was made mainly in the fifteenth century, in the sixteenth century, then some later restorations. It is a marble floor, so there are the marble pieces assembled based on the drawings that the great artists made and then the workers assembled them. So the problem is that stepping, walking on the floor can cause damage to the floor itself, so normally throughout the year a large part of the floor is covered."

2.- "To make it visible and do some small restoration work, we uncovered it at this time".

3.- "I would say that the cathedral floor is like a mirror of European humanism".

4.- "It is a choice, that of the floor, that we have not been able to make, none of the art historians who have dealt with it have been able to understand if there was an initial design, a project... but in a way it is a path. It is a path of culture, but also a path of faith".

5. "It is a path of humanity, in some way, it will rediscover the human being at the center, with the divinity at the center, however, which is at the bottom of the whole path".