They are considered extraordinary examples of early 20th-Century European sculpture: the unreinforced tamped concrete monumental sculptures »Horse« and »Cow« by the sculptor Gerhard Marcks on the Giebichenstein Bridge in Halle (Saale). Shortly after their completion the first cracks appeared, and over time they have widened. In a cooperative project of the City of Halle an der Saale and the Institut für Diagnostik und Konservierung an Denkmalen in Sachsen und Sachsen-Anhalt e. V. of Halle (Saale), a restoration concept was developed and implemented.

An alkali-silica reaction and human-caused sulfur compound air pollution (»acid rain«) were identified as the principal factors involved in the damage. Since water penetration is decisive in all such damage processes, the bridge sculptures were encased in wood and allowed to gradually dry out. This was followed by cleaning of the surface and filling of the cracks. Finally, the figures were coated with a water-resistant sludge.

Project operation
Stadt Halle (Saale)
Marktplatz 1
06108 Halle
www.halle.de

Cooperation partner
Institut für Diagnostik und Konservierung an Denkmalen in Sachsen und Sachsen-Anhalt e. V., Halle (Saale)
meinhardt@idk-info.de
www.idk-info.de

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