This article examines the conservation of one of the most vulnerable categories of archaeological heritage—monumental wall paintings executed on clay plaster—through the case studies of Varakhsha and Panjikent. It comparatively analyses the reasons, methodology, and scholarly implications of the mid-twentieth-century practice of detaching wall paintings from their original setting and transferring them to museum collections. The study demonstrates that while this approach ensured the physical preservation of the paintings, it also resulted in the partial loss of their architectural and archaeological context. The article argues that in situ conservation should remain the preferred approach, with removal undertaken only when no viable alternative exists, and that comprehensive digital documentation should be an essential requirement in all cases.

monumental painting, wall painting, conservation, restoration, musealization, Varakhsha, Panjikent, Sogdian art, in situ conservation, digital documentation.

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