In the fields of conservation and art history, the term “detached frescoes” refers to mural paintings that have been physically separated from their original architectural support.

Among the various detachment procedures, the strappo technique - developed and systematised in Italy between the 18th and 19th centuries - involves the delicate removal of the fresco’s painted layer by applying cloths glued with animal glue, which are then lifted. This process transfers the thin painted surface, often together with the preparatory plaster, onto a new support, such as canvas.    

While originally conceived as a means of saving works threatened by structural degradation or urban transformations, the strappo technique has also been criticised for the irreversible alteration of the artwork’s material integrity and for separating it from its architectural context.    

In both the scholarly literature and museum practice, the expression “frescoes removed using the strappo technique” is therefore frequently encountered, highlighting both the conservation procedure and the historical-artistic implications of the detachment.