A long-lost Renaissance masterpiece showing the Virgin Mary and Jesus is returning to Perugia for celebrations marking 550 years since the birth of its creator, Pinturicchio.
The painting, rediscovered earlier this year, is considered among the best work by one of Umbria's most famous artists, born in Perugia in 1458.
It was completed at the end of the 15th century and remained safe in private hands for 400 years. However, at the end of the 19th century, it was sold and taken abroad, where all trace of it vanished.
Descriptions of the lost work continued to circulate for another century but the painting itself only resurfaced this spring, during an auction in Vienna, when it was snapped up by a Perugian financial institute.
It was brought back to Italy, where it has been undergoing analyses and careful restoration work for some months.
Although the canvas itself was still in relatively good shape, the wooden frame supporting it had been damaged, requiring a meticulous intervention to prevent harm to the painting.
Now back in Perugia, the Madonna and Child will shortly be showcased in Palazzo Baldeschi, an exhibition space belonging to the Fondazione di Cassa di Risparmio di Perugia, the institute that acquired the work and which has become famous for its art collection.
The exhibition of the piece is designed to offer a foretaste of much broader festivities marking the anniversary of Pinturicchio's birth, including a remarkable show in the National Gallery of Umbria.
Running from February 2, the artist's birthday, until June 29 next year, the exhibit will bring together nearly all Pinturicchio's surviving, transportable works.
In addition, it will feature a large collection of pieces by the master's contemporaries, intended to highlight the leading role he played in shaping the Renaissance art scene.
Also on display will be another major rediscovery: an original letter written by Cesare Borgia, son of the notorious 'Borgia pope', Alexander VI, for whom Pinturicchio completed several commissions.
In the letter, which is dated October 14 1500, Cesare Borgia intercedes on behalf of the artist, who was trying to build a house in Perugia at the time.
Addressed to a Perugia resident, Alfano Alfani, the letter says Pinturicchio is like a "family member" to the Borgias and asks that he be allowed to use Alfani's well.
Like the Madonna and Child, the letter was common knowledge until the 19th century and was even published in 1898. It then vanished without a trace before being tracked down and purchased by the same financial institute last year.
