Acropolis' famed Caryatids get 'cosmetic surgery'

In this March 28 photo, conservator Costas Vassiliadis uses a laser to clean a Caryatid at the Acropolis museum in Athens. The laser beam hits the black crust formed on the surface of the statues over the years, and that absorbs energy and disintegrates, said Vassiliadis, who heads the six-strong team. The crust has a much lower resistance threshold than the marble, which is not affected.

By Nicholas Paphitis

They're some of Greece's most celebrated beauties. And after nearly 2,500 years, it's perhaps only fitting that they're getting a face-lift.

The Caryatid statues, which until the late 1970s propped up a section of the Erechtheion Temple on the Acropolis, are being meticulously cleansed of grime inside the museum where they're now housed.

Three goggle-wearing conservators zap away dirt from the marble maidens with custom-designed lasers, as tourists watch the operation on monitors. The restoration work is surrounded by a white fabric screen to protect visitors from laser beams, which can cause permanent eye injury.

One of the six Caryatids was removed by Lord Elgin in the 19th century and today stands in the British Museum. The other five were removed from the Erechtheion in 1979 to protect them from air pollution and acid rain, and replaced by copies.

Museum director Dimitris Pantermalis said the main reason for cleaning the sculptures on the spot was to avoid the potential hazards of moving them. But there's the additional value of offering tourists the spectacle of restoring some of the greatest glories of the ancient world.

"We want to offer visitors a backstage peek," he said.

Visitors are impressed: "The fact that it was in situ, taking place in the museum, it does bring it home to you the actual level...