The article discusses methods of mechanical cleansing applied in the conservation of murals. The first of the presented methods – dusting, consists of the removal of dust particles by delicately rubbing the surface of the painting with feathers, brushes, paintbrushes, etc. The second involves breaking off build-up by splitting the layers with the help of a scalpel or a cobbler’s knife. The third method – rubbing – involves cutting away across numerous edges of the build-up. The final method of stratification/ peeling extracts layers by using substances with considerable shrinkage. The author explains in detail the properties of the particular methods and the conditions which must be met in order to apply them.