VINCI - 2005 annual report

THE HALL OF MIRRORS RESTORED TO ITS ORIGINAL SPLENDOUR
On 19 December 2005, VINCI and Etablissement Public de Versailles unveiled the fi rst half of the Hall of Mirrors to the press
and public following 18 months of restoration work. Access to the Hall was maintained throughout the period for the four
million annual visitors. This fi rst comprehensive restoration effort focused on two aspects. Firstly, the architectural décor by Jules Hardouin-Mansart, which
consists of marble panelling, mirrors and sculptural features in bronze: this was worked on by teams made up of restorers from within the VINCI Group and outside
specialists. The second aspect was the painted and sculpted decoration of the vaulted ceiling. Here, some 60 restorers have reinstated the full subtlety of the palette of
colours used by Charles Le Brun, First Painter to Louis XIV, while taking measures to preserve this original seventeenth century décor for the long term.
Bottom left. As an addition to the collection of the Guimet Museum in Paris, VINCI donated a silver-bronze statuette representing a third century bodhisattva.
Bottom right. Restorers working on the ceiling of the Hall of Mirrors. The paintings on maroufl aged canvas have been cleaned. The removal of layers of varnish
and later repainting has revealed the original colours used by Charles Le Brun.
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VINCI 2005 ANNUAL REPORT