15th Century And Earlier
Antonello da Messina acquired by Italian State?
February 9 2026
Picture: Sotheby's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Italian art press are drawing attention to a Facebook post from the Fondazione Federico Zeri which claims that the Italian state have acquired Antonello da Messina's Ecce Homo. The picture was withdrawn from last week's sale at Sotheby's New York. Several other social media posts from Italian cultural figures, some of which have been subsequently deleted, also seem to support this notion. An official announcement is still lacking. More news as and when it appears.
Update - Sotheby's have released an update that the painting was indeed acquired by the Italian state for $14.9m (which presumably includes commission).
Colantonio Restored
February 3 2026
Picture: capodimonte.cultura.gov.it
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Naples that Colantonio's St. Francis delivering the rule to the Franciscan orders has been restored. The picture, which is in the collection of the Museo di Capodimonte, has been conserved as part of commemorations of the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis. Click on the link above to see more details supplied by the museum.
Perugino on view at Sotheby's NY
January 30 2026
Picture: Sotheby's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The cimasa of Perugino's Decemviri Altarpiece, on loan from the National Gallery of Umbria, is on view at Sotheby's New York over Old Masters Week. The work has apparently never left Italy. After being displayed at the Breuer building it will head to the Morgan Library where feature within the exhibition celebrating the newly restored Pietà by Giovanni Bellini.
Rediscovered Hans Baldung Grien Drawing at Auction
January 19 2026
Picture: Drouot
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from France that Beaussant Lefèvre & Associés, in collaboration with the Bayser firm, will be offering a newly rediscovered drawing by Hans Baldung Grien on 23rd March 2026. The work will be offered carrying an estimate of €1.5m - €3m.
New Release: Italian Paintings at the Yale University Art Gallery
January 16 2026
Picture: Yale University Press
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Yale University Press released the first volume (covering 1230-1420) of the new publication Italian Paintings at the Yale University Art Gallery earlier this week. This volume was edited by Laurence Kanter and Pia Palladino.
According to the book's blurb:
The collection of Italian paintings at the Yale University Art Gallery is one of the largest and richest in the world. The first of four volumes on the collection, this sumptuously illustrated book features over seventy-five works dating from 1230 to 1420 by artists such as Taddeo Gaddi, Andrea di Cione (better known as Orcagna), Lippo Memmi, Pietro and Ambrogio Lorenzetti, and Lorenzo Monaco. In addition to discussions of each painting’s meaning, function, and significance, entries provide published references, provenance, full technical notes, and detailed conservation histories. An introduction by Laurence Kanter chronicles the history of the collection, from the James Jackson Jarves Collection that was assembled in the nineteenth century—the earliest formed collection of Italian paintings in any American museum—to more recent gifts by Louis and Hannah Rabinowitz and Richard Feigen. While many of the works are from Florence and Siena, the volume also includes examples from Bologna, Rimini, Venice, and more. Through its wide-ranging holdings, the Gallery’s collection provides a remarkable sense of the diverse visual culture of the time.
Missing Nicolás Francés panel rediscovered with Google Lens Search
January 15 2026
Picture: finestresullarte.info
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News has arrived that a missing panel, which once formed part of a set of four by Nicolás Francés (active 1424 - 1468), has been rediscovered in an American museum with the aid of a Google Lens search. The panel, which had been displayed in the Church of San Miguel de Villalpando in Spain but had been missing since 1957, was tracked down by ZamorArte Foundation in Zamora. The discovery was aided by old photographic negatives and research into the dealers who handled the picture during the later part of the 20th century. It is hoped that the set might be reunited for some future exhibition in Spain. Click on the link to read the full story.
Update - A comment from a reader:
I have to say that I was more than a little amused by the very breathless article in Finestre sull-Arte about the "rediscovery" of a Nicolás Francés panel in Springfield, Massachusetts.
While it is terrific news that the Zamorarte Foundation now knows where the panel is located, the painting was hardly lost. It is correctly identified in Springfield's galleries, where it's almost always on view, and it has been published, again correctly, in that museum's catalogues several times since they acquired it in 1964.
In fairness, the Springfield collection is less well known than those in, say, Hartford or Worcester, which are nearby, but the d'Amour / MFA is quite a good museum and has done a decent job of making the collection known over the decades. That said, their collections database is still pretty limited, so that plays a role.
Lorenzo di Bicci to be Conserved
January 14 2026
Picture: ansa.it
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Italy that the State Archives of Prato will be restoring their Lorenzo di Bicci of a Holy Bishop with Donors, which notably includes portraits of the merchant Francesco Datini and his wife Margherita. €20,000 has been raised for the project. Click on the link above to read more about the history of the artwork.
Filippino Lippi and Rome in Cleveland
January 8 2026
Picture: Cleveland Museum of Art
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
I'm a little slow to news that the Cleveland Museum of Art opened a new exhibition at the end of last year dedicated to Filippino Lippi and Rome.
According to the museum's website:
Filippino Lippi and Rome reconsiders the lasting impact of the painter’s time in the Eternal City, juxtaposing Filippino’s Roman artworks with their Florentine precursors and successors. The exhibition places 25 paintings, drawings, and antiquities in direct conversation with important loans from national and international lenders, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art; His Majesty King Charles III; the National Gallery, London; the Galleria degli Uffizi; and the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin, among others. For the first time, these related artworks are brought together, in some cases reuniting paintings with their studies.
The show will run until 22nd February 2026.
Lorenzo the Magnificent exhibition for Autumn 2026
December 30 2025
Picture: ansa.it
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Uffizi in Florence have announced a big exhibition on Lorenzo the Magnificent for Autumn 2026. With over 100 objects, featuring loans from across the globe, the show will focus on the inventory made on his death in 1492.
Last Judgements in Turin
December 22 2025
Picture: San Marco Museum / Galleria Sabauda
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Musei Reali in Turin will be hosting a special exhibition in February bringing together Last Judgements by Fra Angelico and Bartholomeus Spranger. These Renaissance and Mannerist artworks will be compared and contrasted in the flesh for the first time. It will run from 6th February until 3rd May 2026.
Griffoni Polyptych Reconstruction
December 19 2025
Video: 12Porte
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Bologna that the Griffoni Polyptych, a large fifteenth century altarpiece which was dispersed in the early-eighteenth century, has been 'reconstructed' in in the Basilica of San Petronio. The panels, undertaken by Ercole de' Roberti and Francesco del Cossa, are now dispersed in museums across the globe and have been reunited in this modern reconstruction with the help of reproductions.
Giotto and St. Francis Exhibition in 2026
December 17 2025
Picture: arte.it
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The National Gallery of Umbria will be opening a special exhibition next March commemorating the 8th centenary since the death of St. Francis of Assisi and the various connections with early Italian artists such as Giotto, Simone Martini and Pietro Lorenzetti. The show will feature no fewer than 60 works and will run from 14th March until 14th June 2026.
14th Century Fresco Restored in Florence
December 12 2025
Picture: finestresullarte.info
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Italy that a 14th century fresco by Master of the Rinuccini Chapel in church of Sant'Ambrogio, Florence, has been restored. The project was undertaken by Cristina Napolitano and supported financially by the Friends of Florence.
Fondazione Perugia acquire Perugino Pair
December 12 2025
Picture: Dorotheum
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Fondazione Perugia have unveiled their latest acquisitions at the Palazzo Baldeschi in Perugia, a diptych of Christ crowned with thorns and The Virgin given to Perugino. The pair were purchased at the Dorotheum last October where they made €842,799 (inc. commission) over their €600k - €800k estimate.
Van Eyck Portraits at The National Gallery in 2026
December 1 2025
Picture: The National Gallery
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The National Gallery in London announced last week that it will be hosting an exhibition focusing on the portraits of Jan van Eyck in November 2026.
According to the gallery's website:
For the first time in history, see all of Jan van Eyck’s portraits together. Only once, only at the National Gallery. [...]
‘Van Eyck: The Portraits’ brings together from across Europe all nine of the artist’s known painted portraits, making up half of his surviving works worldwide. [...]
Precious and fragile, van Eyck’s paintings rarely travel, including 'The Arnolfini Portrait'. This is one of the most popular paintings in our collection and and has only ever left the Gallery once in over 100 years. The exhibition marks the first and only time these works can be brought together. And this incredible display can only happen here, at the Gallery.
The show will run from 21st November 2026 until 11th April 2027.
Paolo da San Leocadio at the Museu de Belles Arts de Castelló
November 26 2025
Picture: Museu de Belles Arts de Castelló
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Museu de Belles Arts de Castelló in Spain have just opened a new exhibition focusing on the technique and techical aspects of the artist Paolo da San Leocadio (1447–1520). The show will run until 15th March 2026.
Fresco Restored in Bari
November 20 2025
Video: TRMH 24
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Italy that a fifteenth century fresco of La Madonna del Segno has been restored in the Church of San Martino in Bari. The wall painting had been covered in centuries worth of overpaint, campaigns of restoration which have since been removed.
Restored Bellini heading to New York
November 10 2025
Picture: City Museum of Rimini
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Giovanni Bellini's recently restored Pietà will be heading from the City Museum of Rimini to the Morgan Museum and Library in New York for a special exhibition opening early next year.
According to artnet.com:
“We already see him merging a few key traditions and influences,” the Morgan’s curator John Marciari said over email. “Thus forging the modern manner for which he is still famous.” The half-length is drawn from the tradition of Byzantine icon painting, the sculptural elements taken from Bellini’s study of Donatello, and his sense of classical form likely gleaned from his brother-in-law Andrea Mantegna.
The painting, which remained at Migliorati’s memorial from his death in 1499 until the end of the 18th century, was in need of serious treatment. Humidity had long ago caused the panel to shift and split, resulting in a loss of paint and a large crack running across the middle of the painting. In celebration of its rejuvenation, Pietà will travel to Ca’ d’Oro in Venice ahead of its stateside showing.
The show will run from 15th January until 19th April 2026.
14th Century Frescos Conserved at Santa Maria della Scala
November 5 2025
Video: Siena News
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
A fresco cycle in the Santa Maria della Scala complex of historic buildings in Siena has been conserved. The works, attributed to Lippo Vanni (active between 1340-1375), were only rediscovered as recently as 1999. The recently restored wall paintings will be opened to the public from 7th November 2025 onwards.
Burgundians in Limburg
October 21 2025
Picture: Limburgs Museum
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Limburgs Museum in the Netherlands opened a new exhibition earlier this month dedicated to the Burgundians.
According to their website:
The people of Limburg are known as ‘true Burgundians’. We think of ourselves as loving fine dining, socialising, and large, lengthy celebrations. But how Burgundian is that really? Who were the Burgundians, who ruled over what we now call Limburg in the 15th century?
The unique exhibition Burgundians in Limburg allows you to take a step into the past. Let the distinctive music, beautiful objects and intriguing stories immerse you in the late Middle Ages. The exhibition focuses on three generations of Burgundians: the illustrious leaders Philip the Good, Charles the Bold and Mary the Rich.
The show will run until 1st February 2026.
