Centuries-old angels uncovered beneath layers of paint at Boston church made famous by Paul Revere

Mural conservators have been hard at work at the Old North Church in Boston, uncovering 20 angels that have been hidden under layers of paint for over a century. The angels, with their childlike faces and wings, were originally painted around 1730 and were once a defining feature of the church.

Gianfranco Pocobene, one of the conservators, has been diligently working atop scaffolding to reveal eight of the 20 angels that have been hidden for so long. The angels were painted over with thick coats of white paint during a renovation in 1912, but now restorationists are working to reverse this and bring back the original beauty of the church.

“It’s really been quite a revelation to find these really interesting and historic works of art on the walls of the church that nobody has seen in our lifetime,” Pocobene said. “Just to be part of a project where we are revealing something from colonial America is really extraordinary.”

The Old North Church is famous for its role in Paul Revere’s midnight ride in 1775, but the painted angels were also an important part of the church’s history. The colorful interior and the angels were a key part of the identity of the congregation of the Church of England.

Efforts to restore the angels began in September, and eight have already been completed with more expected to be finished by spring. The conservators have faced challenges in removing seven layers of paint without damaging the angels, but they have been able to successfully restore them to their original glory.

Corrine Long, a painting conservator working on the project, expressed the satisfaction of returning parts of the church to its original state. “Whenever I go into a building with history, it amazes me to be surrounded with paintings or decorations that were there originally,” she said. “When it’s been repainted to be white, it takes away some of that majesty and history.”

Visitors to the church, like Sean Dixon and Sarah Jardine from California, have been intrigued by the ongoing restoration work. “I was kind of shocked when I first saw it,” Dixon said. “It looks really cool, and I’m really excited to see the full picture once the scaffolding comes down.”

The project to uncover and restore the angels at the Old North Church is not only a labor of love for the conservators but also a way to preserve the history and beauty of this historic landmark for generations to come.