Confused in Minneapolis
by Kimberly Stevens
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A Priest
Ricardo Gonzales
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It all started with a relatively unremarkable unsigned bust of Pope Clement X, who was Pope from 1670 until his death in 1676.
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The bust, which was purchased from a New York art dealer in 1958, collected dust for years in a remote corner of The Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The original purchase price? A whopping $4,000. Most scholars assumed the sculpture was made by a student of Bernini (1598-1680), the famous Italian Baroque sculptor.
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White Head
Athos Zacharias
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The Duke's Thoughts
Roxa Smith
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Enter Francesco Petrucci, an Italian scholar who often conducts research at the Clement X library in Rome. One day recently, Petrucci stumbled upon a sales receipt for the bust, which indicated that Bernini's close friend Giovanni Gaulli (a Vatican painter) delivered the sculpture to the Vatican for the Pope himself.
The plot thickens.
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At the time the bust was dropped off at the Vatican, Bernini's brother Luigi was center stage in a scandal at the Vatican. He was caught in the Basilica of St. Peter engaged in a sexual act that could have easily landed him in prison. Ten days after the bust was delivered to the Vatican, Luigi was set free and all charges were dropped.
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Kiss or Kill
Peter Illig
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Church Outing
Francois Mayemba
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While Petrucci believes the bust was definitely made by Bernini, the discovery has caused a flurry of debate among art historians and scholars all over the world.
Did the famous artist make the work as a gesture to ingratiate the Pope and help his brother at the same time?
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Meanwhile, back at The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the bust has been given a very high profile spot on a pedestal in the main gallery. According to experts, the bust could be worth $4 million, although no definitive conclusion on its creator has been reached.
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Icon
Peter Illig
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Crowd
Francois Mayemba
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The good news: museum attendance has shot through the roof!
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Read our archived Art in the News |
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