Richini’s Courtyard, Ca 'Granda – The University of Milan

Via Festa del Perdono, 7 20122 Milano

Restoration of Richini’s courtyard and experimental job sites at Ca 'Granda

The works for the courtyard made by Richini at Cà Granda were started in the fifteenth century and completed by architect Francesco Maria Richini in the seventeenth century. The massive use of Angera stone, with high porosity, caused a sharp deterioration of the sculptural elements, exacerbated by wartime destruction and by environmental pollution caused by sulfur compounds. The first restoration (1990-1994) involved a vast operation of desalination, removal of cement, grouting and consolidation.
The lack of maintenance resulted in further degradation: during the most recent consolidation (2006-2007) nanosuspensions of lime in propyl alcohol, material fully compatible with the Angera stone, have been used.

By Luciano Formica