The Annunciation, panel from Lorenzo Ghiberti's North Door of the Florence Baptistery(1403-24); replica

The North doors have suffered from centuries of pollution, which has greatly increased over the last decades. Their golden surface was nearly hidden for generations of visitors, but it is now being brought to light again through an ongoing restoration, thanks to the international patronage promoted by the Guild of the Dome.The long restoration of the Gates of Paradise has profoundly changed the methods of conservation of gilded bronze panels by means of new technologies and has set new international standards which are now being applied to the restoration of the first set of doors created by Ghiberti. This panel depicting the Baptism of Christ, is a replica of the original panel after restoration.