MECKA BAUMEISTER: My name is Mechthild Barmeister. I am one of the conservators here at the Metropolitan Museum who has worked on the conservation treatment of the Spanish ceiling, which you see above you. We have a special guest here today, Mitch Codding, and he is the Director of the Hispanic Society in New York.

MITCH CODDING: The ceiling is… one of the most typical forms of ornate ceilings found in late medieval and early renaissance Spain. They were first employed in the Islamic cities and palaces. And what did you find in the conservation of this ceiling?

MECKA BAUMEISTER: It has always been apparent to us that the ceiling had been extensively restored. We know that the ceiling was bought by William Randolph Hearst… in the 1920s. It was found that the ceiling had been enlarged by approximately 60 percent by the addition of new boards, and the overall configuration of the ceiling was changed at that time. Originally all medallions that are painted red now were gilded.

MITCH CODDING: The medallions combined with the stalactite ornament in the center would've created, particularly in the lighting that these spaces would've had, the effect of looking up at the heavens, or the stars. It's the gilded elements that really pop and show up, and you can tell the colors in the background, but they're a lot more subtle in their effects.

MECKA BAUMEISTER: What we decided was to preserve the altered ceiling in its present condition, and just try to unify the original elements with later restoration ones. And we hope that one day… we will find out from which church the ceiling originates, so that we can even prove the original shape of the ceiling.