Vatican City, Apr 22, 2009 / 08:09 am
The Pope's culture commission is joining the effort to help restore the artwork and statues damaged in the earthquakes that struck Italy’s Abruzzo region.
The April 6 earthquake struck the medieval city of L'Aquila and the villages and towns in the region. The Italian government has begun an assessment of the damaged sites, which foreign governments have offered to help restore.
Among the most famous are L'Aquila's 16th-century Spanish castle, the Rennaisance church Saint Bernard of Siena and the 13th-century basilica of Santa Maria of Collemaggio.
On Wednesday, the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Patrimony of the Church asked "all financial and cultural institutions, museums, public and private restoration workshops, and qualified restorers who have not already done so, to give written confirmation of their spontaneous willingness and readiness 'to adopt' a mobile work of art."
Italy's culture minister said that the restoration work will cost about $65 million.