As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’m fascinated when old mysteries are solved with new technologies.
The most recent example is the announcement this week that what was believed to be a 19th century German painting by an unknown artist is in reality an unsigned Leonardo da Vinci from the late 15th century — the first major da Vinci work to be identified in a century. Since there are only a couple of dozen paintings accepted as da Vincis, this carries the force of an atom bomb in the art world. (See all of the da Vincis, including the disputed ones, here courtesy Wikipedia.)
So what has changed to attribute the painting to the master? Well, improved carbon-dating techniques, fingerprinting and a multispectral infrared digital scanner all played a part. Apparently Leonardo left hand- and fingerprints on more than one painting, and new technologies enabled forensic specialists to match them to one discovered on the painting in question. There are some questions concerning one of the art experts (aren’t there always?) but evidence does seem to substantiate it being a true da Vinci. CNN and the Associated Press both offer a good overview of the story, and all will be explained, in detail, in a forthcoming book by an Oxford University da Vinci expert.
And oh, yeah – the painting sold at auction two years ago for $19,000. It’s now valued at a cool $150 million. A Bella Principessa, indeed!
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