2019_06_20_CIE_moropoulou

Antonia Moropoulou, scientific supervisor of the project restoration of the Edicule of the Holy Sepulchre, pointed out at the University of Navarra that innovation and digitalization have been key to the dating, conservation and restoration of this project."The tomb of Christ is a monument that speaks to all humanity and innovation only amplifies its voice," said the expert during the inaugural lecture of the congress of Historical Mortars, which brings together more than 180 scientists from around the world at the academic center.

In fact, according to the professor of the National Technical University of Athens, the dating of the different pieces has confirmed the history and the pre-existing tradition about this work of art and sacred place. Antonia Moropoulou described as "innovative" and "integrated" the methodology of research applied in this work that has allowed the successful rehabilitation of the tomb of Christ, where at all times has ensured the integrity of the monument as well as the maintenance of its intrinsic values.

The inaugural session began with a technical description of the edicule of the Holy Sepulchre and a detailed explanation of the before and after restoration: from the assessment of the existing detour in the monument, the installation of the marble panels, to the application of the final mortar, among other aspects.

Restoration work on the Edicule of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem began in 2016 and for nine months a team multidisciplinary of more than fifty people worked on this project.

Moropoulou gave prominence to the holisticmanagement of this work where various disciplines such as Theology, History, Architecture or Engineering have met. Moropoulou pointed out that this transdisciplinarity and the lessons learned in this rehabilitation "can be used for the restoration of other historical monuments in the future". Although this restoration project has concluded, he assured that research continues and that the "Holy Edicule has been rehabilitated and secured".

The opening of congress was attended by Enrique Maya, Mayor of Pamplona; Luis Montuenga, Dean of the School of Sciences of the University of Navarra; Ignacio Álvarez Galindo, professor of department of Chemistry of the University of Navarra; Antonia Moropoulou and Ioanna Papayianni, president of committee RILEM of methods of assessment of mortars for Heritage.