Addressing Biocolonization in the Conservation Project of the Portal of the Church at San Ignacio Miní, Misiones, Argentina

The main facade of the Church at the San Ignacio Miní Jesuit-Guaraní Mission in Argentina recently underwent a conservation intervention. The church, dating from the late 17th century, was restored in the 1940s after having been abandoned for nearly two centuries. It was built using the local red sandstone, ranging from a quartz arenite to a stratified arenite, both for the masonry and the decorative sculptured elements.

While biocolonization is the most visible deterioration agent, the stone is also subject to other weathering factors such as wet-dry cycling and the formation of a natural black patina. These processes biocolonization, reduce water infiltration and clean the masonry as well as test application of passive methods for biocontrol are described and discussed. The rationale for the intervention, that aimed to maintain both the historic and the artistic value of this monument, was to avoid any action that would cause more deterioration to the original fabric than that caused by natural weathering.

Magadán, Marcelo L.; Cedrola, Marcela L.; Korth, Gisela M. A. and Charola, A. Elena: "Addressing Biocolonization in the Conservation Project of the Portal of the Church at San Ignacio Miní, Misiones, Argentina" Restoration of Buildings and Monuments. Vol.13, N° 6, 401-412. Biocolonization of Stone: Control and Preventive Methods. Proceedings from the MCI Workshop Series. Smithsonian contributions to museum conservation - number 2 Edited by A. Elena Charola, Christopher McNamara, and Robert J. Koestler

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