MNAC warns mural paintings cannot withstand vibration during ordered relocation 

The Catalan National Museum of Art (MNAC) in Barcelona has warned that studies show that the mural paintings "cannot withstand vibration," and that a relocation “could damage” them. 

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ordered the MNAC to return the Romanesque murals to the Sixena monastery in Aragon.  

The murals in question date back to the 13th century and are considered singular pieces of the Romanesque era. According to the court, MNAC was never the owner of the works, and was only in possession of them, meaning that the court case doesn’t expire. 

Carme Ramells, head of the restoration and preventive conservation department at MNAC, stressed the "fragility" of the frescos and stated that they are also "very sensitive to environmental changes." 

"The set of materials that make up these paintings, which we also find in other detached murals from the Pyrenees, is essentially what makes them very fragile works," Ramells explained.  

To the press, Ramells argued that these works "are no longer mural paintings, but rather a kind of artifact." The murals have a minimal layer of paint; paint, she added, that was removed using the strappo technique. In art conservation, this is a method used to detach fresco paintings from walls.  

After the paint removal, other materials were added because "once this thin layer of paint is removed, it needs to be given new support to give it consistency," said Ramells. All of it, she concluded, was mounted at the MNAC on wooden and plaster structures. 

Small explosive cocktails 

Ramells also explained that the paintings are very chemically reactive because their components are sensitive when exposed to excessive water, which can trigger chemical reactions. "We’re dealing with a small explosive cocktail," she said.  

One such reaction, she noted, is the formation of salts, which can lead to the detachment of paint particles. All in all, she stated: "All the studies carried out on a physical level, including vibration, confirm that these paintings cannot withstand vibration, and therefore, a relocation and change of setting could damage the paintings and entails an extremely high risk." 

Ramells also pointed out that the paintings are not outdoors, but in exhibition rooms, and the indoor air is very different from the air outside in Barcelona. "This happens in all museums. The works at the Tate in London are not exposed to London's polluted air."