Conny Waters - AncientPages.com - A 500-year-old copy of Leonardo da Vinci’s 16th century painting known as "Salvator Mundi" (Savior of the World) was found hidden in an apartment, and recovered by Italian police team working on a bigger operation.
Italian police officers stand by a copy of the “Salvator Mundi” (Savior of the World) by Leonardo da Vinci, in Naples, Italy, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. Image credit: Italian Police via AP
The artwork which was probably painted by one of the Renaissance master's students was discovered at an apartment during a search in the Italian city, according to a police statement, writes AP, adding that the painting of Jesus Christ was stolen from a small museum in a side chapel of the Basilica of San Domenico Maggiore in Naples.
The priests did not even realize that the theft took place, especially because the museum had been closed during the coronavirus pandemic.
As Fabbrocini said the discovery was particularly satisfying "because we resolved a case before it was created." He explained: "The painting was found but its custodian hadn't realized it was stolen."
According to Police chief Alfredo Fabbrocini, the apartment owner was detained after he offered a "less than credible" explanation that he had "casually" bought it at a market.
See also:
Mysterious Orb In Leonardo Da Vinci’s Painting Salvator Mundi Investigated
The painting is a copy of the "Salvator Mundi" by Leonardo that sold for a record $450 million at a Christie's auction in 2017.
The valuable artwork depicts a robed Jesus Christ holding a crystal orb and gazing directly at the viewer. The San Domenico Basilica says the painting was probably made by a Leonardo student in the 1520s and purchased by Giovan Antonio Muscettola, an adviser to Emperor Charles V and ambassador to the papal court.
Housed in the basilica's Muscettola family chapel, it was restored prior to being exhibited in a 1983-1984 show "Leonardo and Leonardism in Naples and Rome."
The unnamed purchaser was later identified as a Saudi royal who allegedly purchased the painting on behalf of the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
It is widely believed that the record-breaking bid was made on behalf of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.
According to CNN, this information was supposed to have been unveiled a year later at the museum, but the exhibition was delayed until further notice and the work hasn't been seen in public since the November 2017 sale. After the Louvre Abu Dhabi announced that it would show the painting, it postponed the grand unveiling in 2018 without explanation.
Written by Conny Waters - AncientPages.com Staff Writer
