Relocation and conservation of a Roman sculpture of the goddess Juno, early second century A.D.:
March 2012, Final installation
Riggers (from Shaughnessy & Ahern Company) set up two tall towers of scaffolding, bridged by heavy steel beams, to move the sculpture upright. The steel cradle is raised slowly using chain falls and a pulley system, which allows careful control of the momentum of the heavy load at all times.
Once vertical, the sculpture is lifted more than two feet above the ground to allow the installation of the steel pedestal under the base.
Wooden beams are inserted underneath to provide temporary support.
A wooden template, replicating the footprint of the marble base, serves as a planning tool to properly position the sculpture on the base and determine placement of anchoring points.
The steel base is assembled underneath the sculpture and secured with structural epoxy and anchors set deep into the gallery floor. The pedestal (designed by Weidlinger Associates, Inc. and manufactured by Quincy Steel & Welding Co., Inc.) will spread the weight of the sculpture between existing beams inside the gallery floor. (Given the weight of the sculpture, architects had been enlisted to review old building plans in order to help identify a location in the gallery to place the pedestal that would be safe for both the sculpture and the building.)
