MILAN – It will not seem like a new thing to you to hear that once again a work by Leonardo da Vinci is shrouded in mystery : this time it is the Portrait of Isabella d’Este who will not only never return to Italy to be part of the artistic heritage of the Bel Paese, but moreover it is even doubtful that Leonardo is its true author . READ ALSO: “We must remove the Mona Lisa from the Louvre
“, the appeal to save the Italian in France Leonardo da Vinci and the unanswered question
Protagonist of another mystery in the world of art and the dated Portrait of Isabella d’Este roughly between 1499 and 1500and presumably attributed to the hand of Leonardo da Vinci , the great Tuscan genius. But there is more because this work in 2013 ended up at the center of a case: it disappeared from the tracks and a lawyer from Lugano was found in possession of a power of attorney to sell the painting for the stellar figure of 95 million euros, price with which was listed in that year. But its rarity, its mystery and its fame have only increased the curiosity around it and, as often happens for “mysterious” works, also its value . But beyond the nest egg to be paid to have the work, the question that most excites the search for a definitive answer is the following: how did this paintingend up in Switzerland READ ALSO: Salvator Mundi, Leonardo da Vinci’s record-breaking painting disappeared Portrait of Isabella d’Este, a family property
It seems that the work belonged to a lady from Pesaro named Emilia Cecchini who maintained firmly that the Quadro has always been a family asset and has always been in Switzerland. But something in this story did not convince the authorities who condemned the lady for illegal export of artistic goods and at the same time the Italian government started the procedures to bring the painting back home . But the work, after some time, continues to remain in Switzerlandand it seems that it will remain there also in the future because the Swiss court has replied that what in Italy was considered a crime, in Switzerland it is not. Ultimately, therefore, the return to Italy of the work is skipped and thus also any restrictive measure on it which will return to be part of the heritage of the Cecchini family. In any case, the mystery as to why it is located in the Canton of Ticino is not yet solved, just as neither is the mystery of who its real author is . A question, the latter, which divides art historians into two schools of thought: based on a charcoal sketch located in the Louvre, very similar to the painting in question and analyzing the latter, the greatest scholar of the genius from Vinci Carlo Pedretti assures that the work is authentic ; but in the opposite faction he sees the criticisms of Vittorio Sgarbi and Tommaso Montanari who contradict themselves that the Isabella of the Cecchini family is a fake . Once again the mystery envelops Leonardo da Vinci and with it the world of art. READ ALSO: Picasso rediscovered, the Portrait of Dora Maar comes back to light after 20 years
