Vatican unveils new discoveries in fully restored Raphael Rooms after a decade

The Vatican Museums unveiled the last and most important of the restored Raphael Rooms, the spectacularly frescoed reception rooms of the Apostolic Palace that in some ways rival the Sistine Chapel as the peak of high Renaissance artistry.

A decade-long project to clean and restore the largest of the four Raphael Rooms uncovered a novel mural painting technique that the superstar Renaissance painter and architect began but never completed: the use of oil paint directly on the wall, and a grid of nails embedded in the walls to hold in place the resin surface onto which he painted.

Vatican Museums officials recounted the discoveries on June 26 in inaugurating the hall, known as the Room of Constantine, after the last scaffolding came down. The reception room, which was painted by Raphael a