Caravaggio painting that was almost sold for just £1,500 at auction before being revealed to be lost work by the Italian Renaissance master finally goes on display
- Experts realised the painting was a Caravaggio before an auction
- The 'Ecce Homo' has now gone on display at Madrid's Prado musuem
A painting by Italian Renaissance master Caravaggio, once mistakenly thought to be by an unknown artist and nearly auctioned off, was unveiled at Madrid's Prado Museum on Monday.
Painted between 1605-1609, 'Ecce Homo' depicts a bloodied Jesus wearing a crown of thorns, his hands tied, as he is presented to the crowd by the Roman governor Pontius Pilate just before his crucifixion.
It is said to be one of around only 60 works by the Renaissance artist.
Three years ago, a Madrid auction house had been due to put the canvas under the hammer with an opening price of 1,500 euros ($1,800 at the time), mistakenly attributing it to an artist from the circle of 17th-century Spanish painter Jose de Ribera.
But just hours before the auction, the culture ministry blocked the sale as it believed it was actually painted by Italian aritst Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, whose works are worth millions.
The last-minute intervention came after the Prado said it had 'sufficient documentary and stylistic evidence' to suggest the canvas was a Caravaggio.
The artist, known to be arrogant and rebellious pioneered the Baroque painting technique known as chiaroscuro, in which light and shadow are sharply contrasted.
Earlier this month, the museum said experts confirmed the painting was 'without doubt, a Caravaggio masterpiece', calling it 'one of the greatest discoveries in the history of art'.
A painting by Italian master Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, known as Caravaggio, once mistakenly thought to be by an unknown artist and almost auctioned off with an opening price of 1,500 euros, has been unveiled at the Prado museum.
Entitled 'Ecce Homo', the dark canvas depicting a bloodied Jesus wearing a crown of thorns just before his crucifixion, is one of around only 60 known works by the Renaissance artist.
Now restored, the old master artwork went on display to the public for the first time on Monday in the Spanish capital in a one-piece exhibition called 'The Lost Caravaggio'. It will remain on display for nine months.
The exhibition was made possible by the 'generosity' of its new owner, who agreed to temporarily lend the work, the museum's director Miguel Falomir said in a news conference on Monday, without revealing who it was.
The painting's emergence is 'extremely important for the history of art because there has been no new work by Caravaggio had been identified for more than 45 years', explained David Garcia Cueto, who is responsible for Italian paintings at the Prado.
Experts say the oil on canvas painting became part of the private collection of Spain's King Felipe IV in the mid-17th century before being put on display at the residence of his son, Charles II.
It was then bequeathed to the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts near Madrid's central Puerta del Sol before being passed on to Spanish diplomat and later premier Evaristo Perez de Castro in 1823.
When he died, it was passed on to his descendants, but disappeared from view for nearly two centuries before resurfacing in April 2021.
Now restored, the painting went on display to the public for the first time on Monday in Madrid's Prado museum in a one-piece exhibition called 'The Lost Caravaggio'.
The painting will be on display for nine months.
Its reappearance stunned Caravaggio experts who were 'absolutely unanimous' in their recognition of the painting's provenance, Cueto said.
'All the Caravaggio specialists are in agreement which means we are certain that this is a painting by the great master of this period,' he said.
Art historians use various methods to determine the legitimacy of an artwork, including forensic examination of the canvas and paint to determine its age, the technology and styles of the era it was created in, and the techniques of the artist.
Spanish media reports said the owner was a British national living in Spain who had paid 36 million euros ($39 million) for the 400-year-old canvas.
But Prado director Falomir said its future was in the hands of its owner.
'It is a privately-owned artwork so the owner will have the last word,' he said.
