Possible da Vinci Painting Emerges from Swiss Bank Vault
- October 06, 2013 19:30
Italian media has reported that a portrait of a woman found in a Swiss bank vault may be by Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci.
The rediscovered finished painting is said to depict noblewoman Isabella d’Este of whom da Vinci's unfinished sketch resides in the Louvre.
Dating from between 1499 and 1500, the Louvre's sketch would predate the painting, which comes from the collection of an Italian family.
Experts say carbon testing and more analysis is needed to determine if the work is indeed by da Vinci, and to determine if his pupils worked on it.
Other questions remain about its authenticity. For one, Leonardo da Vinci preferred to work on wood and the discovered painting is on canvas, said Martin Kemp, professor emeritus of the history of art at Trinity College, Oxford, to Britain's Daily Telegraph.
