Michelangelo Painting Found Behind Couch in New York

[cbdo2007]

'Lost Michelangelo' Found Down Back Of Sofa



4:08pm UK, Tuesday October 12, 2010
David Williams, Sky News Online

A painting a family had stored behind their sofa for over 30 years could be a lost Michelangelo worth £190m.

To retired pilot Martin Kober, the family heirloom picturing the Virgin Mary holding the body of Jesus was simply referred to as "The Mike".

The work, passed down from his great-grandfather, had hung in the living room of the family's home near Niagara Falls, upper New York, for decades.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Strange-News/Michelangelo-Painting-Found-Behind-Sofa-Claimed-Renaissance-Work-Found-In-Niagara-Falls-New-York/Article/201010215756527?lpos=Strange_News_News_Your_Way_Region_8&lid=NewsYourWay_ARTICLE_15756527_Michelangelo_Painting_Found_Behind_Sofa%3A_Claimed_Renaissance_Work_Found_In_Niagara_Falls%2C_New_York

[krispos42]

1. A third of a billion dollars?

Nice....... :wow:

[Rex]

2. Dam, all I have is three dimes and some fuzz behind my couch.

I'll check back tomorrow.

[lame54]

38. and a McDonalds fry...

that is older than the painting

[Whoa_Nelly]

3. ...........

[gateley]

5. Wonder how much He would fetch... nt

[Whoa_Nelly]

8. WWJF?

What Would Jesus Fetch? Very good question, indeed!

[Art_from_Ark]

9. I had to laugh out loud at that one

:rofl:

[gateley]

4. The article says once verified, the family will let it tour around the world's galleries -

no indication they were going to cash in on it. I'd be hightailing it to Christie's so fast you'd only see a blur.

[cbdo2007]

11. I thought that was them cashing in on it....not by selling it outright, but

couldn't they make millions on touring it and licensing rights to the image?

I would sell it as well for the "lump sum" payout, but maybe they consider it an important family heirloom so will take the $1,000,000 per year for the rest of their lives for touring/licensing fees.

[Stevenmarc]

40. It will take years to authenticate this painting

The word of one art historian will get the ball rolling, but it will be a slow roll.

[pnwmom]

6. Sounds like a few generations

got a break on estate tax.

:shrug:

[Lasher]

22. And the estate tax is zero this year.

[pnwmom]

24. What do you think? Coincidence?

Hmmm . . .

[Lasher]

33. It would be interesting to see how this works out.

No inheritance tax at all? Look back to previous years for collection of inheritance taxes when the apinting was passed on to heirs? My guess is, no taxes now and no lookback. And nothing about it in the news.

[cliffordu]

7. Piltdown man, anyone????

I wondered when my long lost family would make good......

[Arugula Latte]

10. Is that from his "black light" period

:hide:

[SoCalDem]

19. hah.. is that velvet, I see?.. and it looks like the virgin mary

may have had a thing for boob belts..:)

[the redcoat]

12. I wonder what the DiVinci under my bed is worth. nt

[HuckleB]

14. Depends on just how lucky you've been.

[HuckleB]

13. Pfft.

That's not a Mike.

[old mark]

15. It looks more Germanic to me, and it looks like Acrylic colors more than oils...

If it was proven real, I'd sell it immediately.

mark

[givemebackmycountry]

16. That ain't a Michelangelo

I know a Thomas Kincaid when I see one...

[boppers]

20. LOL, it's "painting with light"!

Seriously, the proportions are totally screwed up, as are the fabric drapes, and the background, and the depiction of subject matter (relative to the cultural perspective of the time).

It all screams "fraud" at me.

Date it an be done with it.

[spinbaby]

41. I'm with you

The moment I saw it, my gut instinct was that it was a fake. Michelangelo was much better than that.

[SoCalDem]

17. pretty ugly picture..but still worth a lot of money

I wonder how many other famous paintings are in barns attics & basements:)

[Stevenmarc]

18. It's going to require a hell of a lot more testing than just x-ray

they're a long way off from authentication the art world doesn't move all that fast. Some old masters have taken years to authenticate.

[donheld]

21. Funny, that's where Jesus was found too

[MilesColtrane]

23. I'm no art historian with X-ray vision, but it doesn't look like the M man to me.

While the Son 'O God has an impressive six pack here, to me, the painting doesn't display the grasp of reproducing realistic proportions of the human anatomy that Michelangelo had in spades.

[pansypoo53219]

26. tho most of his women do look like men w/ boobs.

but it does seem to fail on anatomy. could be a lesser artists work.

[WolverineDG]

30. because most of his models were men nt

[Dappleganger]

34. Precisely...

artists paint pictures of people they adore.

[cbdo2007]

27. True.

Though it is said to be Michelangelo's last work so maybe he was old and not able to paint detail as well? Also, I'm sure the pic posted above does NOT do justice to the actual painting which is probably pretty spectacular in person.

[AwakeAtLast]

31. I was going to post about the six pack, too!

Pretty interesting depiction, IMO.

[elehhhhna]

35. yep. He was a superb sculptor and couldn't have painted

something soooo out of proportion. unless it's his first painting, ever.

[progressoid]

25. video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2Vh8YVqLoc&feature=player_embedded#!

[HopeHoops]

28. Yeah, I keep losing my Michelangelo paintings there too.

[WolverineDG]

29. Amazing find

wish that kind of lightning would have struck my family.

dg

[Canuckistanian]

32. Damn, I knew I left it SOMEWHERE

Been looking for that thing for years.

[Evasporque]

36. HOLY CRAP!... I Pissarro'd my pants! ....nt

[NashVegas]

37. Inevitably, There Will Be a Lawsuit

Mr Kober said research suggests it passed from Italy to Croatia, then on to Germany, before coming into his ancestors' possession on America's East Coast.

Maybe, maybe not.

[JitterbugPerfume]

39. that is one ugly painting

and I seriously doubt that it is authentic. It is all out of proportion.

[LibertyLover]

42. I wonder if the proportions are off

because of where the painting was going to be hung? Actually, if you look at Michelangelo's Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel you'll see better six packs. Although I have a master's in art history, I certainly don't claim to be an expert on Michelangelo by any stretch of the imagination. However, looking at some of his other painted works, both frescos and paintings, there is just something about this that seems off. Michelangelo was not the best painter when it came to women (and he wasn't that great at sculpting them either - some of his female figures look like men with breasts attached as an afterthought) but the clumsy handling of the figures, both Mary and Jesus doesn't seem in his style. Oh well, the experts can decide.

[elehhhhna]

44. looks to me like Jesus was painted on later.

i have no credentials whatsoever, btw.

[Blue_Tires]

43. If real, it HAS to be stolen, right??

[xchrom]

45. cat hair -- that's what's behind MY sofa. from a cat i don't even own -- who just comes to visit!

:mad: