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Ballarat Botanical Gardens, Statue Maintenance

Overview

Established in 1858, Ballarat Botanical Gardens is one of Victoria’s oldest Botanical Gardens boasting a large collection of Italian marble statues throughout.

The 21 marble statues were all donated in the 1880’s. Five statues are sheltered in the Statuary Pavilion, with another 16 outdoor statues gifted by J. R. Thomson; 12 classical mythology statues gifted by T. Stoddard, two lions gifted by D. Ham. Two major works came from public donations: the Claxton Memorial fountain and the imposing statue of Scotsman Sir William `Braveheart` Wallace.

ICS was commissioned to undertake a condition assessment of the statues in February 2021 and provide a schedule for annual maintenance and conservation.

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Year

2021

Client

City of Ballarat

Services

Outdoor statue maintenance
Indoor statue maintenance
Fountains
Public Art
Sculpture conservation

Awards

Condition

After nearly 150 years, the outdoor statues had been eroded and stained by rain, weather and bird droppings, as well as being covered in leaf litter from nearby trees, biological growths and spider webs. Some of the statuary had graffiti, and some had highly polished surfaces from repeated manual contact and climbing by the public.

The indoor statues were more protected from the elements, their condition mainly affected by dust, bird droppings, spider webs and erosion by manual contact.

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Treatment

In April 2021, ICS completed maintenance conservation on the 21 statues. The objective was to clean the statues and remove the dirt before it could stain the marble. The treatment methodology included dry manual cleaning and wet pressure washing, followed by an application of biocide to treat ingrained biological growth.

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Outcome

Ballarat’s heritage-listed marble statues are now regularly maintained to preserve their value and beauty for future generations.

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