Boston church made famous by Paul Revere has centuries-old angel discovered beneath layers of paint

Conservators at the Boston church made famous by Paul Revere are working to unearth 20 angels hidden under layers of paint for more than a century.

Gianfranco Pocobene has been working on the scaffolding of the Old North Church to uncover 8 of the 20 hidden angels.

The painted angel with childlike face and wings was once one of the iconic features of Boston’s oldest church building, the Old North Church, painted around 1730. part of.

“Six months ago, when we first saw this project, we had no idea what was here,” Pokobeni said as the church prepared to display eight of the 20 angels.

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“To find these really interesting and historically significant pieces of art on the walls of a church is something we’ve never seen in our lifetimes,” he continued. “It’s really amazing to be a part of a project where we’re revealing something about colonial America.”

The Old North Church is most famous for the two lanterns hung on the steeple on the night of Paul Revere’s horseback expedition in April 1775, warning of the approaching British army. Revere was also a church bell ringer as a teenager.

“For most of the church’s history, people who came to the church would see those angels and see the colorful interior,” said Emily Spence, associate director of education at Old North Lighting. The Old North Lighting Company operates the church as a historic site.

“The color scheme is an important part of the identity of the people who worship here as members of the Anglican Church of England,” she said.

On Wednesday, December 18, 2024, a nearly 300-year-old painted angel appeared on the wall of Boston’s Old North Church. (Associated Press)

Work began on the Sandstone and Teal Angels in September, with eight completed this month and eight more expected to be completed in the spring, Spence said.

Researchers know from historical records that the angel is still on the wall, and they also have a copy of the contract signed with John Gibbs, a member of the congregation who painted the angel. A paint study conducted in 2017 confirmed that they were still on the walls.

Corrine Long, a painting conservator who works with Pocobeni, said one of the challenges in restoring the angel was removing seven layers of paint without damaging it. Restorers first used a solvent gel to soften the paint layer and then manually removed it with a plastic scraper. They then cleaned the angel with cotton swabs and touched it up to remove any signs of damage.

“They all have their own character — they’re not replicas,” Pokobeni said. “The artist John Gibbs painted them individually, and they are all in different poses, which makes them form a really wonderful rhythmic pattern on the surface of the church.”

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A recently restored, nearly 300-year-old painted angel, upper right, is seen in the arch of the historic Old North Church in the North End neighborhood on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, in Boston. (Associated Press)

One of the most satisfying parts of the project, Long said, is restoring parts of the church to the founders’ intent.

“Whenever I walk into a historic building, I’m surprised to see all the paintings or decorations that were originally there,” she said. “When it was repainted white, it lost some of its majesty and some of its history.”

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On a recent day, the church was largely empty except for administrators. But Sean Dixon and Sarah Jardine, a pair of visitors from California, were also there, walking the aisles and observing the scaffolding that slightly obscured their view.

“When I first saw it, I was kind of shocked,” Dixon said. “It looks really cool and I’m excited to see the full view once the scaffolding comes down.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.