pieta perduta

The Lost Pieta: Has A Michelangelo Masterpiece Been Discovered In New York?

Filed under: Art, Books

Could a lost Michelangelo painting have been hanging in a New York home for decades? A new book by Italian art historian Antonio Forcellino, "La Pieta Perduta" (The Lost Pieta) asserts that an unfinished painting of the Virgin Mary and Christ is the work of the Renaissance master and could be worth millions. Forcellino says the piece is definitely by Michelangelo and that X-rays done on the piece show the changes that the artist made as he went along. The owner hasn't sought publicity. He told the Sunday Times in London that he grew up with the pairing and that it was passed down from his great-grandfather. After he inherited the painting he started doing more research in the heirloom that he had always been told might be a Michelangelo. He eventually made contact with Forcellino who came to New York to authenticate the painting. Forcellino believes the painting was created by Michelangelo in 1545. His research has led him to find that the painting eventually was owned by a baron in Croatia and then a German baroness, who passed it to her lady-in-waiting, Gertrude Young. When Young died, the painting remained with her brother-in-law -- Martin's great-grandfather. The painting will be restored and will go on display it Italy next year but the owner hasn't said whether or not he will sell it.

[via Art Fix Daily]

Tags: art, lost masterpieces, michelangelo, pieta perduta, the lost pieta