Documented Interventions in the Altarpiece and in the Choir Stalls of the Cathedral of Funchal (16th to 20th Centuries)

Abstract

The artistic and religious heritage of the Cathedral of Funchal was affected by several factors of deterioration, as climatic adversities, smoke due to the systematic use of candles, lack or excess of care in its cleaning, often done with abrasive methods, as well as inappropriate techniques of conservation. Despite the great losses of art pieces of the 16th century and the first decades of the 17th, to which the consulted documentation refers, a significant artistic collection remains in situ: the main altarpiece, the choir stalls, the paintings of Michiel Cocxie in the altar of Senhor Jesus (Our Lord Jesus) and in the altar of Santo António (Saint Anthony), the ceiling paintings, the sculptures, and so on. Other art pieces of this provenience can be seen at the Museum of Sacred Art in Funchal, as the 16th century Flemish paintings Nossa Senhora do Amparo (Our Lady of Help) and Ascensão (The Ascension of Jesus), of Fernão Gomes; sculptures; gilded carved wood panels of a Última Ceia e Camarim (Last Supper) from the 17th century; gold and silver plate from the 16th to the 19th centuries.
This article aims to track the documentation about the campaigns of works and interventions on the altarpiece of the cathedral and on its main altar choir stalls, as well as the minor improvement works, the mobility of pieces and the painters and gilders who intervened these pieces.
In addition to the existing bibliography, the authors consulted the Cabido da Sé documentation, at the National Archives Torre do Tombo, material dispersed in the Historical Archives of the Diocese of Funchal and part of the cathedral archives released by Father Pita Ferreira. The purpose of this collected data was to help future investigations on the subject, in addition to supporting the conservation and restoration works carried out between 2011 and 2014 in the cathedral, by teams from the José de Figueiredo Conservation and Restoration Laboratory and the Department of Conservation and Restoration of the Museums Conservation Institute, in collaboration with the HERCULES Laboratory of the University of Évora.

Keywords

Cathedral of Funchal; Altarpiece; Choir Stalls; Painting; Gilded Wood; Construction Campaigns; Interventions.