" The Last Supper " Said To Be Breathtaking As People Lined Up For Hours

[Patdwfsyte]

Visitors lined up for hours Sunday outside a Milan church to see Leonardo da
Vinci's ``The Last Supper'' as it was intended to be seen - without having to
peer through scaffolding. The public has been allowed in from time to time
during the 20-year restoration process, but the late 15th-century painting
finally could be viewed without scaffolding blocking part of it. The painting,
on the wall of a dining hall in a monastery adjacent to Santa Maria della
Grazie church, has undergone 19 known restorations in four centuries said PA
news. The latest one, begun in 1978, aimed to restore badly faded colors and
undo some damage from previous restorations. Leonardo's use of tempera - a
technique less durable than true fresco painting, which is done on wet plaster
- has made deterioration a problem. Hundreds of people waited Sunday to get a
look at the painting. Officials were allowing groups of 20 to view it for 15
minutes at a time to limit the pollution that contributes to deterioration,
Italian TV reports said. By next year, a reservation system will be in place to
shorten the wait, according to the reports.