In 1766, the canons decided that the sculpture was not worth keeping because it was mediocre. They then covered everything in a layer of plaster in order to affix other art work on top of the tympanum. Not until 1837 when another canon curiously began to chip away at the plaster was the tympanum discovered. Luckily, it was preserved underneath the plaster with the exception of the head of Christ which was documented to have been removed so that the plaster could fill the tympanum completely.