Michelangelo Bust Rediscovered in Italy
A marble bust in an Italian basilica has been re-attributed to Michelangelo after centuries in obscurity. Extensive research and analysis led to this significant art historical discovery. The finding promises to draw Renaissance art enthusiasts and history lovers to the basilica for a fresh encounter with the master's work.
The sculpture, depicting Christ the Saviour, is housed in the Basilica of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura in Rome. Its re-attribution is the result of over a decade of research by independent Italian researcher Valentina Salerno. Salerno's conclusion is based on extensive archival work, tracing wills, posthumous inventories, and correspondence from 1564 onward, rather than relying solely on stylistic analysis. This documentary trail reconstructs a direct link between Michelangelo's estate and the bust. For nearly 200 years, the bust was considered an anonymous work of the 16th-century Roman school. It had originally been attributed to Michelangelo, but that association was lost in the early 19th century. The research challenges the long-held narrative, popularized by historian Giorgio Vasari, that Michelangelo destroyed many of his drawings and models before his death. Salerno's findings suggest the artist instead entrusted works to a close circle of collaborators for their preservation. The re-attribution has been met with interest, though some Renaissance scholars remain unsettled and are calling for a peer review of the evidence. Salerno, an author and actress without a formal art history degree, describes her approach as that of an investigator relying on public documents. The announcement of the potential discovery coincides with the 550th anniversary of Michelangelo's birth. In response to the new focus, the marble bust, located in a side chapel of the basilica, is now protected by an alarm system.
