<i>Hercules and Omphale</i> was rediscovered in 1937, submitted in 1955 to the first Restoration Committee. In 1963 a new backing was applied with some difficulty. In 1973 it was decided to exhibit the painting after removing all traces of glue, old, darkened varnishes, overpainting, and a new and better lining was carried out in 1978-1979. A number of small and large lacunae were revealed, and it was found necessary to show that parts of the paintings had not been done by Rubens himself. In preference to <i>tratteggio</i>, the method selected to reintegrate the work was derived from pointillism: small colored dots on a red brown background visible from a close distance. This method was found highly suitable from a technical as well as an aesthetic point of view.