Researchers in Florence May Have Discovered Lost Mural By Leonardo Da Vinci

Peter Paul Rubens, Copy after Leonardo's 'Battle of Anghiari', c. 1604 - Black chalk, pen and ink, highlights in grey and white  45.2cm x 63.7cm. Louvre Paris. ➤ This work by Rubens, dating from 1603 and known as The Battle of the Standard, was based on an engraving completed in 1553 by Lorenzo Zacchia, which was taken either from Leonardo’s ‘Battle of Anghiari’ painting, or possibly derived from a cartoon (preparatory drawing) by the master. The original painting by Leonardo was believed to be lost. But...it may be hidden behind a painting completed years later--by Giorgio Vasari.From ArtDaily.org:

FLORENCE (AP).- Researchers may have discovered traces of a lost mural by Leonardo da Vinci by poking a probe through cracks in a 16th-century fresco painted on the wall of one of Florence's most famous buildings. The latest findings Monday still leave much mystery in the hunt for the "Battle of Anghiari," a wall mural painted by Leonardo in Florence's storied Palazzo Vecchio, and possibly hidden behind a fresco done by Giorgio Vasari decades later.

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This Sunday, National Geographic Channel will be airing "Finding the Lost DaVinci" (9pm, PDT), a documentary detailing one man's thirty-year search for the lost masterpiece.

'Oldest' Images of Christ's Apostles Found in Rome

Restorers used new laser technology to uncover the images.Reprinted from 22 June 2010 - BBC Mobile News EuropeArt restorers in Italy have discovered what are believed to be the oldest paintings of some of Jesus Christ's apostles.

Faces of Apostles Andrew, John, Peter and Paul were uncovered using new laser technology in a catacomb in Rome.

The paintings date from the second half of the 4th Century or the early 5th Century, the restorers and Vatican officials believe.

The images may have influenced later depictions of Christ's early followers.

"These are the first images that we know of the faces of these four apostles," said Fabrizio Bisconti, head of archaeology for Rome's numerous Vatican-owned catacombs.

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I KNEW IT! Vatican Reverses Itself, "The Martyrdom of St. Lawrence" Not a Caravaggio

FROM ART DAILY - 26 JULY 2010

VATICAN CITY (AP).-The Vatican's top art historian on Monday shot down a report in its own newspaper that suggested a recently discovered painting was a Caravaggio.

The head of the Vatican Museums, Antonio Paolucci, wrote in the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano that the work was most likely a copy of an original by a Caravaggio-influence artist.

It was L'Osservatore itself that set the art world aflutter last week with a front-page article headlined "A New Caravaggio," detailing the artistry behind the "Martyrdom of St. Lawrence," which had been discovered in the sacristy of a Jesuit church in Rome.

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400 Years After His Death, Caravaggio Work Is Found

The martyrdom of St Lawrence in a newly discovered painting thought to be by Caravaggio

From The Independent (UK) by Michael Day in Milan, Monday, 19 July 2010

Art experts in Rome are analysing what they believe is a previously unknown painting by the Italian Baroque master Caravaggio.

As his homeland marked the 400th anniversary of his death this weekend, the Vatican's official newspaper L'Osservatore Romano published the newly discovered work on its front page. Depicting the martyrdom of St Lawrence, it was found recently among the possessions of the Society of Jesuits in Rome. It shows a semi-naked young man, his mouth open in desperation with one arm stretched out as he leans over flames. If the suspected provenance is confirmed, it would be the first painting by the Baroque genius to emerge since The Calling of Saints Peter and Andrew, which went on display two years ago.

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It's impossible to evaluate whether or not this is a genuine Caravaggio without seeing the original painting, reviewing the testing done on the work, reading the scholarship devoted to the painting, and analyzing any other documentation related to the provenance of the work. My gut reaction is that I do not find the photograph at all convincing. To my eyes, this appears to be the work of a follower of Caravaggio, rather than by the artist himself. The lighting and tone transitions are harsh and imitative. Caravaggio was a master of subtle lighting and of tenebrism (a style he developed). Nevertheless, this painting is an exciting discovery.