Last fall, the Cincinnati Art Museum began a multi-year conservation project focused on one of the museum’s most beloved spaces: the Damascus Room.

The Damascus Room is made up of intricately decorated wooden panels. Some of the panels date as early as 1712, while others were likely added in the twentieth century before the room entered the museum’s collection. Together, they create a remarkable example of the luxurious interiors once found in homes of eighteenth-century Damascus, Syria.

The room’s wooden surfaces are decorated using the ‘ajami technique, a process in which artisans applied a paste of glue and gypsum to build raised decorative patterns. These textured designs were then covered with shimmering metallic leaf and richly colored paints and glazes, creating dramatic contrasts of light, texture, and color.

Over the centuries, the room has undergone several restoration campaigns. Examination and historic records suggest that at least three previous conservation treatments were carried out before the current project began. During those earlier efforts, protective coatings were applied to the painted surfaces. Although intended to preserve the decoration, these coatings have naturally aged and darkened over time, masking many of the room’s original vibrant colors and details.

The museum’s current conservation campaign focuses on carefully removing these later coatings to reveal the brilliance of the original surfaces beneath. So far, conservators have completed treatment on three sections of paneling. One section, now partially conserved, is currently on view in the Conversations Gallery (adjacent to the museum’s Entry Lobby) where visitors can see the conservation process firsthand and glimpse how the restored room may eventually appear.

Visit the gallery to experience this transformation in progress through June 17 and follow along for future updates as conservation of the Damascus Room continues.