At the foot of the Mount of Olives work artisans from Trentin: Adriano and Matteo Plaga, father and son, and a handful of tinsmiths have restored the roof of the basilica at Gethsemane.
“We are tinsmiths. There are a lot of people who say roofers… but we are tinsmiths, metalworking artisans!”
The artisans who restored the roof of the Basilica of Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives, Adriano and Matteo, are very proud of their work. The typical leaden exterior covering is almost ninety years old, and even though it appears to be almost perfect, it needs some work so as not to risk water damage to the splendid mosaics inside the Church of All Nations. But what brought this family from Trentin Val di Non to the Holy Land is an old story.
“I fell from a roof while I was working,” the major partner, Adriano Plaga, tells us. “I fell between eight and fifteen meters. The only thing that happened to me was a broken arm and a bruised mouth. I told myself: I have to go and thank the Lord that I’m still here!”
So Adriano made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, his arm still encased in the plaster cast. It was then that he met Fr. Michele Piccirillo and his request for some work. “Why not,” Adriano asked himself. At the time he was still working alone and he thought that this proposal would stay behind in Jerusalem and never be realized. But Fr. Piccirillo contacted him and entrusted him with the restoration of the roof of the little church of the Franciscan monastery on Mount Nebo in Jordan, then that of the memorial attached to the monastery, before coming to the Holy City, to the rooftop of the Basilica of All Nations. This is a very special location, giving a privileged view of Jerusalem and the olive grove. Adriano is fully aware of this when, speaking of his work, he says, “It is an honor.”
In 2001, Adriano decided to entrust his son Matteo with managing the small business, but the present director had not yet been involved in the family activity. Like the prodigal son, he returned home after a brief adventure in the sky. “I decided to be an airline pilot. I did that for three or four months, but… it wasn’t my life,” he tells us, between two of Gethsemane’s cupolas. “Then I came home and said: Papa, I’ve come back to work with you. And he answered, “Excellent! Here, there is always work!”
It is a passion, which like the skies, is still a part of him. Working on roofs means staying in touch with the sky and now he gets dizzy when he is on the ground, Matteo confides.
“I followed in my father’s footsteps,” continues the director of Plaga Matteo Tinsmiths. “Even if I chose a different way at first, I always had this in my blood!”
Working with lead is not simple; it is an art that gives the satisfaction of creating something, seeing it come into being and grow, but that also makes you sweat. It is very tiring, but you don’t feel it, continues Adriano, the father, “if you just think about where you are. It’s an honor to be here and to be able to lose yourself in a few thoughts, a few prayers… You become able to join work and meditation, with prayer.” Sometimes you have to get some perspective, maybe from a rooftop, to understand that there is still more to what is meant by the Latin phrase “ora et labora” (pray and work).
The work on the roof is part of the general restoration of the basilica’s mosaics that began just over a year ago. (See the article and video here.) The work is being financed by the Custody and supported by the “Gethsemane: preserve the past and form the future” project of its NGO, Pro Terra Sancta. On its Internet site, the NGO regularly provides information to its donors. (See the list of articles at the bottom of this page.) You could always be one of them!
See also the Franciscan Media Center video – click here
The restoration of the roof in Gethsemane
“We are tinsmiths. There are a lot of people who say roofers… but we are tinsmiths, metalworking artisans!”
The artisans who restored the roof of the Basilica of Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives, Adriano and Matteo, are very proud of their work. The typical leaden exterior covering is almost ninety years old, and even though it appears to be almost perfect, it needs some work so as not to risk water damage to the splendid mosaics inside the Church of All Nations. But what brought this family from Trentin Val di Non to the Holy Land is an old story.
“I fell from a roof while I was working,” the major partner, Adriano Plaga, tells us. “I fell between eight and fifteen meters. The only thing that happened to me was a broken arm and a bruised mouth. I told myself: I have to go and thank the Lord that I’m still here!”
So Adriano made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, his arm still encased in the plaster cast. It was then that he met Fr. Michele Piccirillo and his request for some work. “Why not,” Adriano asked himself. At the time he was still working alone and he thought that this proposal would stay behind in Jerusalem and never be realized. But Fr. Piccirillo contacted him and entrusted him with the restoration of the roof of the little church of the Franciscan monastery on Mount Nebo in Jordan, then that of the memorial attached to the monastery, before coming to the Holy City, to the rooftop of the Basilica of All Nations. This is a very special location, giving a privileged view of Jerusalem and the olive grove. Adriano is fully aware of this when, speaking of his work, he says, “It is an honor.”
In 2001, Adriano decided to entrust his son Matteo with managing the small business, but the present director had not yet been involved in the family activity. Like the prodigal son, he returned home after a brief adventure in the sky. “I decided to be an airline pilot. I did that for three or four months, but… it wasn’t my life,” he tells us, between two of Gethsemane’s cupolas. “Then I came home and said: Papa, I’ve come back to work with you. And he answered, “Excellent! Here, there is always work!”
It is a passion, which like the skies, is still a part of him. Working on roofs means staying in touch with the sky and now he gets dizzy when he is on the ground, Matteo confides.
“I followed in my father’s footsteps,” continues the director of Plaga Matteo Tinsmiths. “Even if I chose a different way at first, I always had this in my blood!”
Working with lead is not simple; it is an art that gives the satisfaction of creating something, seeing it come into being and grow, but that also makes you sweat. It is very tiring, but you don’t feel it, continues Adriano, the father, “if you just think about where you are. It’s an honor to be here and to be able to lose yourself in a few thoughts, a few prayers… You become able to join work and meditation, with prayer.” Sometimes you have to get some perspective, maybe from a rooftop, to understand that there is still more to what is meant by the Latin phrase “ora et labora” (pray and work).
The work on the roof is part of the general restoration of the basilica’s mosaics that began just over a year ago. (See the article and video here.) The work is being financed by the Custody and supported by the “Gethsemane: preserve the past and form the future” project of its NGO, Pro Terra Sancta. On its Internet site, the NGO regularly provides information to its donors. (See the list of articles at the bottom of this page.) You could always be one of them!
See also the Franciscan Media Center video – click here
The restoration of the roof in Gethsemane