Michelangelo Mania? Two Works Newly Linked to the Master

"The study was conducted by the Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage of Belgium (KIK-IRPA), which dated the painting to 1520 and 1580, within Michelangelo's lifetime. The work's pigments also fell within that same period: a crimson hue, Cochineal red lake, dates to 1540, while a blue smalt was also used by Michelangelo on his Sistine Chapel frescos."

"X-ray fluorescence analysis further tied one of the monograms on the canvas to the Italian master. The signatures were also applied to the original dry paint layer, with crackles running through them, 'so they were definitely not applied after the craquelure in the paint had formed,' Steven Saverwyns of the KIK-IRPA noted."

"When the collector received the canvas in 2024, he realized it bore two signatures and sent it away for technical analysis. In a catalog, the lot was described as a 16th-17th century work by an anonymous artist, 'inspired by the models of Andrea del Sarto, Pontormo, Francesco Salviati, and, of course, Michelangelo.'"

A Pietà painting depicting Mary holding the dead Christ has been scientifically linked to Michelangelo through multiple analytical methods. The work was dated to between 1520 and 1580, within Michelangelo's lifetime. Technical analysis by Belgium's Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage identified pigments consistent with those used by Michelangelo, including Cochineal red lake from 1540 and blue smalt found in his Sistine Chapel frescoes. X-ray fluorescence analysis connected one monogram to the master, while the signatures were applied to the original paint layer with crackles running through them, confirming their authenticity. Additionally, an Italian researcher attributes a bust in a Roman basilica to Michelangelo, suggesting it was deliberately hidden to protect his works.

Read at Artnet News