Conservators begin the evaluation process on the Gettysburg Cyclorama in 2003. Vertical cords placed in front of the painting mark out sections for photography to begin. (Olin Conservation- NPS)

In an effort to restore the cyclorama to its original condition, conservationists have removed layers of paint from previous repair efforts, including some that altered portions of the scene. David Olin pointed out that treatment of the canvas was not coming a moment too soon. "We have photographed the sections before treatment began to remove grime and dirt as well as the 1950's-60's over paint," he explained to the park staff last week. "We found that several areas were patched with old canvas removed from the missing section of sky. There is heavy damage to the remaining sky due to the zinc content in the paint an other factors."

Olin & assistants clean the upper portion of the painting where more damage to the canvas and paint than predicted was discovered. Zinc oxide in the original paint bonded with grime and dust, making the cleaning process a delicate one. (Olin Conservation- NPS)

Result of cleaning on the sky section. Paint had chipped off during moves from one place to another and then painted over by later artists. The areas in dark blue are from later paint repairs. (Olin Conservation- NPS)

The painting has gone through three sessions of restoration work, the first in 1910-13 when it was transported from Boston to Gettysburg and hung in a new building on Baltimore Street. The painting was repaired by artists hired for the work once it had been hung at its new home and there were numerous sections that were over painted to hide flaws or breaks. The paints used at this time are distinguishable due to the pigments used in the oil. "That's one thing we have to contend with," Olin continued, "whether to remove the old over paint or just repair it with our paints, where the pigments we use will not fade." Additional paint repairs were made in the 1940's and between 1959-62.

Olin carefully cleans and removes some of the later "over paint" that covers details around the figure of a soldier carrying water buckets. (Olin Conservation- NPS)

With the over paint removed, original details are exposed. The soldier was carrying the end of a stretcher painted out of the scene when a section of the canvas behind the figure was lost. (Olin Conservation- NPS)

A major feature missing from the cyclorama was the sky, the upper portion of which was cut away prior to the move into its current home. The sky that remained suffered from an unstable environment in the cyclorama auditorium despite the best efforts of park conservators to regulate humidity and temperatures in that portion of the building. The sky of the two sections was the first area cleaned and examined by Olin and Huston, and both were surprised at what they found. "We never found in our previous details how badly damaged the sky was," Olin remarked as he pointed out several areas of loose paint. "The damage is not so apparent from the (viewing) platform, but close up I found severe cracks in the surface paint that might extend through (the canvas)."

Conservators work from multiple levels of scaffold placed in front of the painting. (Olin Conservation- NPS)

"When they put these panels up they were flexible," Olin remarked. But the canvas has stiffened significantly because of a combination of adhesive and preservatives used during the 1960 project, and the difficult to control environment of the building. Heat and cold and humidity all have contributed to the stiffening process. This may present additional problems in taking down the canvas panels and their transportation, but steps were taken to insure the paint and canvas were stable before any move was made.

A conservator removes some of the over paint from the cyclorama canvas, leaving the original paint in tact. Once the total condition has been evaluated, the bare areas will be repaired with paints based with identical colors to the original. (Olin Conservation- NPS)

Prior to any conservation treatment the painting was subdivided into rectangular grids measuring four by five feet each. Photographs were taken of each grid area and the process will be repeated after treatment. The photographic process is one of the more time consuming aspects of the project but the result will be complete documentation of every square inch of the canvas.

On February 16 and 17, 2004, the two "test" sections of the painting were dismounted and moved to an off-site conservation facility where the Huston/Olin team continue the conservation work. This work includes removing the backing and adhesives applied in the early 1960's, further cleaning and consolidation of the paint layers and development of an appropriate backing for the newly restored canvas.

The Gettysburg Museum Foundation is directing the project as part of its $95 million partnership with National Park Service at Gettysburg to build new museum and visitor facilities, restore portions of the battlefield and preserve the park's extensive collection of Civil War-era archives and artifacts. Painting restoration will cost more than $9 million; of that, Congress has appropriated $7 million. The fully restored painting will be moved in 2007 into the new museum and visitor facilities, in a state-of-the-art gallery with proper conditions for its preservation. The cyclorama will be fully restored and include the three dimensional foreground that gave those first viewers a sense of realism, pulling them right into the scene. The famous cyclorama in Atlanta, Georgia, is one of the few surviving cycloramas with its foreground still intact. When the Gettysburg Cyclorama re-opens to the public, its condition will be as close as possible to that when artist Paul Phillippoteaux first unveiled it to an enthusiastic crowd in Boston in 1884.

The Cyclorama Painting Program and the Cyclorama Center closed on November 20, 2005 so that the remaining sections of the painting can receive further treatment. Olin Conservators are currently working on the painting in the center's auditorium, the cleaning and restoration process involving a staff of eight conservators and specialsts.

The restored cyclorama not open to the public again until the new museum and visitor center opens in the fall of 2008. For a current Cyclorama Center operating schedule, visit Plan Your Visit to Gettysburg National Military Park.

National Park Service
Gettysburg National Military Park
97 Taneytown Road
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania 17325

John Heiser
Gettysburg National Military Park
revised, June 2006