The ornate memorial had been affected by the (formerly) damp environment the chapel and damaged by crude overpainting and heavy repairs carried out in the past. Conservators Lynne Humphries and Emma Norris, of Humphries and Jones Ltd. removed the overpaint to reveal the underlying scagliola (decorative marbling effect). Dated to 1667 -69, this is now thought to be the earliest example of scagliola in England.
Following the long-established principles of the SPAB – to repair what is there, not replace – their careful work ensured that the monument retained its gloriously faded appearance. They also resisted remodelling missing elements, including a cherub’s face and the arms of the principal figures, as evidence to suggest how these might have looked was not substantial and they wished to avoid conjecture.