67 Anica Gorgievska Institute and Museum – Bitola ... - ICOM-SEE

-Sanitation was made on the shallow sub-spaces of the mosaic.
-The unusually small stones were loose, cracked, some become perishable and were free – not
bind to the surface. Some stones have fallen and were missing completely (Picture 7). Those
stones were fixed immediately, were injected and retouching was done on some of them.
-There was also severance of the stitch between the wall and the mosaic underlay. Since the
mosaic is undividable part of the architecture it was stitched again to the walls by using the old
technique system (Picture 8)
The conservation interventions on the Northern Section of the Great Basilica were implemented in
several directions:
- In the frames of the project for archeological research that was running in the same time, we
discovered, on our great satisfaction, under the existing conservated mosaic, an older one
(Picture 9). It was ascertained that the mosaic in the Northern Section had southern bordure
that was, in some time period, torn off from the mosaic. Larger conservation interventions were
done exactly here – the bordure of 70cm was marked and imitation was done of the default
(original) bordure that is visible on two spots. This activity, in fact, treated the entire southern
edge of the mosaic all to the northern stylobat.
The cracks that were present on several places were subject to treatment.
- Every ruined (perishable) mortar was corrected. This strengthened and bind the mosaic to its
default and conservated underlay.
The following conservation interventions were made in the South Annex:
- Stitching of the mosaic to the wall and the main damage of this mosaic – somewhere to the
middle the Western portion of the mosaic was overlapping the Easter part. In other words, what
we did was ‘stretching” of the mosaic in order to reach its initial status. We have to point out that
this type of damage is result of the extreme climate conditions in the city of Bitola.
This mosaic was also subject to the necessary injections, joining of the empty spaces and
minimum retouching. All other interventions were also made.
- In the South Section and Naos of the Great Basilica the same situation of damages was
ascertained as with the above mentioned mosaic surfaces and the interventions were basically
the same, with only difference that on the Naos mosaic we identified certain anomalies on the
underlay (the concrete plate) which literally sinks, it is ripped and treated. What is imperative as
priority one measure in the reconservation is the correction of the plate. The deformation with
large inclinations and differences in the leveling of the plate were corrected.
- The last phase of protection of these mosaics was re-covering with new separated sand, first
with 5 cm layer, followed by plastic jute and then one more layer of 25 cm (Picture 10).
This protection also plays double role – protection from extreme climate conditions in the Bitola
region – tropic summers and polar winters.
We can say that with this conservation interventions on these mosaics we only provided first aid
treatment. The question is now how to proceed The final aim of our goal is permanent
presentation of these mosaics meaning that permanent conservation treatment is necessary.
The presentation of the mosaics in Heraclea so far – open, reconstructed and not very much
presented looks more like a book, a good book that is written, deposited and read by none.
Some of these mosaics can be also seen on slides, photos, etc. but this impression short term
and with insufficient depth.
Maybe during this period there is overemphasizing on the specifics of the activities on these
mosaics and numerous focusing on their exceptionality however, by pointing out that problems
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CONDITION OF THE CULTURAL
AND NATURAL HERITAGE IN THE BALKAN REGION