Sensational Discovery: Unknown Masterpiece By Raphael Found

In a private collection – not in Italy, but in a foreign country – a hitherto unknown masterpiece was found, in all likelihood belonging to the hand of Raffaello Sanzio. The painting “Mary Magdalene with dark hair, square neckline, hands with beautiful pointed fingers, gathered together, eyes more penetrating than penitent,” painted in oil on a poplar board and dated 1504, measures 46 by 34 cm. As stated by Italian and international scientists, this is the face of Chiara Fancelli, wife of Perugino, teacher of Raffaello Sanzio.

As the Italian news agency ANSA writes, “this work has been in the research center for some time,” the results of its study will soon be published in the pages of the scientific journal “Open Science, Art and Science” under the title “Raphael’s Magdalene, or when the student surpasses the Master.”

The preliminary results of the study were anticipated at an international conference in Pergola (Pesaro-Urbino) entitled “Ideal beauty. Raffaello Sanzio’s Vision of Excellence,” which was attended by many world-famous experts. Their conclusion was unequivocal: this is “the highest artistic achievement of the Italian Renaissance,” “a rediscovered masterpiece of Raphael.”

However, according to art historian and Deputy Minister of Culture of Italy Vittorio Sgarbi, “there is no probability that the painting was made by a master from Urbino. This opinion is based on the knowledge of a few, since this work is in a private collection, and given the owner’s legitimate desire to own Raphael,” it is probably a prototype of Perugino.

In support of the attribution of Raphael, ANSA writes, “the sputtering technique is used to transfer a preliminary drawing (always used by the artist from Urbino, not Perugino), identified during laboratory analyzes carried out by A.R.T. & Co, a subsidiary of the University of Camerino, located in Ascoli Piceno.”