Painting discovered in French attic is “$178 million Caravaggio”

PanARMENIAN.Net - A painting discovered in the attic of a house in France is an "authentic" work by Italian Renaissance master Caravaggio that could be worth up to 120 million euros, two experts said Tuesday, April 12, according to AFP.

But others still have doubts over the spectacular canvas.

The owners of the house near the southwestern city of Toulouse discovered the dramatic 400-year-old painting when investigating a leak in the ceiling in 2014.

It depicts the beheading of General Holofernes by Judith from the biblical Book of Judith. It is in remarkably good condition, and was painted between 1600 and 1610, specialists believe.

Expert Eric Turquin said it could be worth as much as 120 million euros ($137 million), describing the painting as having "the light, the energy typical of Caravaggio, without mistakes, done with a sure hand and a pictorial style that makes it authentic".

While other specialists have questioned its provenance, Turquin got the backing of a top Caravaggio specialist, Nicola Spinosa, former director of a prestigious Naples museum.

In an expert assessment seen by AFP, Spinosa wrote: "One has to recognise the canvas in question as a true original of the Lombard master, almost certainly identifiable, even if we do not have any tangible or irrefutable proof."