# @gettymuseum on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/CKzmB76HFvf
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/34229560-gettymuseum-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/2f191245c9.jpg
- **Posted:** 2021-02-02T22:12:59.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Getty (@gettymuseum) — https://gondola.cc/gettymuseum

## Caption

For this month's #ConnectingCollections, join our conservation team in the lab as they prepare a fragmentary Roman sarcophagus featuring three Muses: Erato (muse of love poetry), Thalia (Comedy), and Euterpe (Music and song), and a seated woman for the Getty Villa's galleries.⁠⁠
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In Greek mythology, the Muses were goddesses of poetic inspiration and the creative arts. Known as the nine daughters of Mnemosyne, or Memory, they were popular images on Roman sarcophagus reliefs, often with portraits of the deceased in their midst.⁠⁠
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This fragmentary sarcophagus was on display when the Getty Villa Museum first opened in 1974 and remained on view into the 1980s, but had since been in storage. ⁠⁠
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When conservators examined the crates after nearly three decades, they found the figures in poor condition. They had been removed from their masonry display, which compromised much of the original conservation treatments.⁠⁠
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To better understand the conditions and differences between ancient, original stone and newer, added materials, conservators examined the figures under ultraviolet light (UV). ⁠⁠
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Light within the ultraviolet range causes many materials to auto-fluoresce. This helps to differentiate between various materials that otherwise are harder to distinguish under natural light.⁠⁠
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Disassembly of the sarcophagus was fundamental to its treatment. Conservators decided to remove all previous conservation materials, and rejoin the fragments using current, more stable methods that can be reversed if needed. ⁠⁠
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Tap the #linkinbio and follow every step of the conservation process that took the Muse sarcophagus from its storage crate to the Getty Villa’s galleries in the new online exhibit “Muses in the Lab: Conserving a Roman Sarcophagus.

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## Tags

connectingcollections, linkinbio

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