By Venizelos G. Gavrilakis
Salvator Mundi, a mysterious record-breaking of $450 million painting by Leonardo da Vinci. A famous painting with a long history Date back to late 1490’s, and others placing it after 1500. Possibly, made for King Louis XII of France and his consort, Anne of Brittany. It is most likely commissioned soon after the conquests of Milan and Genoa. A theory that’s not acceptable from all the historians.
Understanding the history of the painting from its creation till now we can see the art market and pricing and the variety of the intervention that done to it till now. Of course, this does not relate with the depicted subject and the symbolism of it. Many people misunderstanding symbolisms and subject of paintings but that’s always happening. Lets have in our mind that : the original artist what he/she wants to say by his/her artwork only him/her could know much better than anyone else !
1625 – French princess Henrietta Maria marries King Charles I of England (1600-1649), the greatest picture collector of his age. It has been speculated that she brings the painting to England.
1650 – The celebrated printmaker Wenceslaus Hollar — publishes a print based on an earlier drawing he had made of the painting, which itself is recorded in the inventory of the royal collection.
1651 – John Stone, when it was returned with other works upon the Restoration to
King Charles II of England (1630-1685), Whitehall, and probably by inheritance to his brother Charles II
1660 – Charles II is restored to the throne and his late father’s possessions are recalled by an
act of Parliament. Stone returns the painting to the Crown.
1666 – An inventory of the collection of King Charles II at Whitehall lists it among the select paintings in the king’s closet, as item 311: ‘Leonard de Vince
1685 to late 18th century – The picture very probably remains at Whitehall during the reign of Charles II’s successor, James II (1685-88), passing to his mistress, Catherine Sedley, Countess of Dorchester (1657-1717), and then painting is disappears until the late 18th century.
Leonardo’s painting Salvator Mundi was long known to have existed, but was presumed to have been destroyed. The composition was documented in two preparatory drawings by Leonardo and more than 20 painted copies by students and followers of the artist The painting disappeared from 1763 until 1900. Which reappear.
1900 – Having vanished for around 200 years, the painting surfaces when it is acquired from Sir Charles Robinson as a work by Leonardo’s follower, Bernardino Luini, for the Cook Collection, Doughty House, Richmond. By this time, the walnut panel on which it is painted has been marouflaged and cradled and Christ’s face and hair have been extensively overpainted.
1913 – Herbert Cook a famous collector bought the painting from Luini and described it as a “Free copy after Boltraffio”.
1958 – offered for sale at Sotheby’s, which sold for 45 pounds. Sotheby’s post-sale list recorded that the buyer was “Kuntz”. The Wall Street Journal discovered that the buyers were a couple from New Orleans, Warren and Minnie Kuntz. When Mrs. Kuntz died, she bequeathed her estate to her nephew, Basil Clovis Hendry, who hung it in the stairwell of his house in Baton Rouge. Mr. Hendry died in 2004. A preliminary appraisal of his estate described the painting as “Continental School (19th century) Portrait of the Head of Christ. Oil on panel. Framed. Poor Condition.” It was assigned a value of $750.
2005 – After Mr.Hendry death Salvator Mundi was consigned to the St. Charles Gallery, a small auction house in New Orleans. The new owner was Mr. Robert Simon which he brought the painting and give it for restoration to Mrs.Dianne Modestini, a Clinical Professor for the Kress Program in Paintings Conservation at the Conservation Center of the Institute of Fine Arts, NYU.
Since then, a new story for the famous painting starting again. Mrs. Modestini made a long research and process restoration with scientific analyzes, examination and photographic documentation of the painting. The initial condition of the painting before coming to the hands of the restorer was in very bad condition. The painting since 17th-century had some very bad interventions and plenty of over paintings – covering parts of the authentic painting layer, also some very brutal over cleaning special in the area of the face destroying parts of the authentic painting layer of the drawing of Leonardo. The investigation of the painting was continued through the process of restoration. since other specialist and experts involved also Metropolitan and other Museums and Gallery between United States and Europe which couple of times the painting went back and forward had been involved for the investigation of the painting authenticity.
Mrs. Modestini made a big report about the history, conservation and restoration etc., which I study it detailly. Through the examination of many experts of Leonardo da Vinci most of them got to the conclusion to agree about the authenticity of the painting. But, because of the brutal over cleaning of the painting, through all this century till now, we do not have a net clear image in the face area. The fact of the over cleanings on the face which they had destroyed very thin layers of colors and also parts of the original sketch which cannot be redone again that gives a not net result to the area of face. This fact can confuse historians or art experts about authenticity confusing it that not authentic. This fact I know it because as a Senior Expert art conservator & restorer I have seen it and discuss it with many historians or experts for others artworks that had same problems.
Salvator Mundi Leonardo painting in 2005 when restoration begun through Mrs. Modestini was in a very poor and bad condition with lots of overpainting’s etc. In her report is referring about the cleaning/restoration of the painting “ I had an easel set up near the corner window of the living room and some basic conservation supplies: solvents, cotton, varnish, and a few tools. I removed the recent varnish and repaints in a matter of hours while Robert Simon watched. A number of passages, particularly the head, were damaged, and the background had been repainted brown. I was not immediately impressed. I knew nothing about Leonardo’s work of this period, nor that there was a lost composition of a Salvator Mundi… “ She cleaned the most of them but she left some of the overpaints. In her report is writing “Although the areas of the upper lip and lower jaw of the Salvator Mundi are badly damaged, there are no original remants of a moustache or beard. In the area of the chin, where there are several large losses and which has also suffered from abrasion, there are some old, darkened repaints that I did not remove. They may be coeval with the green repainting of the background. Also, the damage around the top of the head where only a few passages of later hair survive has the shape of a halo, perhaps an indication that one may have been removed when the background was scraped. (This halo shaped damage above the head is also present in the Ganay copy) ..“
It is very common that Jesus has a bear and a small moustache according to almost all depiction of Jesus either in western Catholic style Icons or in the east in Orthodox Icons. From medieval times, the appearance of the mature Christ was clearly described: His hair is wavy and curled with a bluish and bright sheen, flowing over his shoulders. It is parted in two on the top of his head, in the mode of the Nazarenes . . .His beard is abundant, of the color of his hair, not long but divided at the chin. Also as far as the etching by Wenceslaus hollar, 1650 – the Thomas fisher rare book library, university of Toronto Jesus depicting with bear and a small moustache. Mrs. Modesteni is writing for this issue to her report “ Like the Hollar etching, most of the versions and variants of the Salvator Mundi are bearded, although the copy in Naples, which is probably by one of Leonardo’s close followers, the beard is rather tentative, consisting of tufts of curls on the lower part of the chin so small and pale in color that they only can be discerned by looking closely at the passage in a strong light. In the drawing in the Brera of the head of Christ, once thought to be a cartoon for the Last Supper, is beardless.” And continuing a bit over on her report “It is possible that the explanation for the beard in the Hollar etching is that when the original black background was repainted with thick green verdigris, a halo and beard were added to make Leonardo’s disquieting, somewhat androgynous image more conventionally pious and masculine. On an undated sheet, now incorporated in the Codex Atlanticus (680r) the artist wrote an enigmatic note:
When I made a Christ Child you put me in prison, and now if I show him grown up you will do worse to me.
(Quando feci Domene Dio putto, voi mi metteste in prigione; ora, s’io lo fo grande, voi mi farete peggio.) “
Leonardo’s interpretation of Christ is still disturbing to some believers.
Of course, There are several technical questions about restoration process that an expert conservator and restore could might have but it is important to understand that if we cannot exam with our own eyes the artwork we cannot of course judge or criticize the work. So according to Mrs. Modestini report Ι quote what I read in her report.
According to an article from Kenny Schachter in June 10, 2019 published in “artnet news” which is writing about where is now Salvator Mundi is referring to a new book on the subject, The Last Leonardo by Ben Lewis, and he is writing “So the question remains, how do you lose a $450 million newly discovered Leonardo? In the murky Middle Eastern waters nothing is quite crystal clear, but my sources—including two principals involved in the transaction who claimed the work has been unequivocally paid for (though I’ve heard more than a few musings it has been only partially settled)—disclosed more. You won’t believe where I’m told the painting is today. Apparently, the work was whisked away in the middle of the night on MBS’s plane and relocated to his yacht, the Serene.” Reffering to where is now the painting and continuing “ After the painting was initially found in shards—it had split into five discrete pieces and had to be reattached during restoration, per Lewis’s book—and its surface literally shaved before being nearly fully restored and repainted, what harm could the occasional splash of seawater do? “ Also, Mrs. Modestini in her report is writing ”The eyes, particularly the proper right eye, are abraded. The area of the chin, neck and breast were harshly cleaned with strong solvents resulting in abrasion of the original paint layers. The thinly painted upper part of the orb, the upper area of the palm, and the fingers have also suffered from abrasion due to harsh cleaning. Much of the original background was scraped off, including the upper part of the hair. The knot itself, which coincides with the center of the stole with the cabochon jewels, fragmented into five pieces of wood. These were reattached to the two main sections of the panel but little of the original design survived; the knotwork pattern in this area is largely later repaint”
Salvator Mundi painting has suffered a lot and of of course at least more than 30% of the painting had been destroyed and been retouched. That’s why as I already referred there is a not clear net on the face area. That does not mean that originally painting was like that. This is also confirmed by Mrs . Modestini that wrights : .. The eyes of Saint John and the Mona Lisa are treated in a similar fashion; they are, however, better preserved.” This technical issue only an expert could understand. According by a Leonardo expert Martin Kemp which has stood by his opinion that Leonardo painted Salvator Mundi. Other experts have voiced serious concerns about the work’s condition and authorship, saying both that it was largely created by Leonardo’s workshop, and that the heavily overpainted work had been so damaged that it is more accurate to call it the work of the restorer than whoever originally held the paintbrush. He is also writing “There have been moves to get me out to look at it,” Kemp said. He’s not sure if he wants to make the trip given the “iniquities of the Saudi regime,” but remains “confident [the painting] is Leonardo’s original,” and says he would go in order to bring the work “into the light,” according to the Financial Times.”
2011 – restoration and research of Salvator Mundi is ending. And get back to art market
2013 – Yves Bouvier buying from Sotheby’s Private Sales. He bought the painting for $75 million.
2016 – Yves Bouvier sale the painting to a Russian oligarchy for $127.5 million, Dimitry Rybolovlev.
2017 – Dimitry Rybolovlev sale the painting through Christie’s amd fetched the record-breaking of $450 million !, including fees.
2018 – New York Times journalist, David Kirkpatrick, revealed that the new buyer was Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan al-Saud, acting for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
A totally new chapter on painting history had just begun. The Saudi Arabia government initially denied the story but then said that the painting would be exhibited at the Louvre Abu Dhabi, which Tweeted a confirmation. The painting never appeared in Abu Dhabi and the museum finally said that the loan had been cancelled.
In December 2019, a secret booklet, “Léonard de Vinci: Le Salvator Mundi”, prepared by the Louvre and printed. The booklet provides detailed conclusions of the louvre’s precise scientific examinations, and concludes that “the results of the historical and scientific study … allow us to confirm the attribution of the work to Leonardo da Vinci”. The existence of the 46-page booklet back and reported its affirmative conclusions. Though the book was never distributed, a louvre spokesperson confirmed at the time that “the book was prepared in case the louvre got the chance to present the painting. As this has not been the case, it is not going to be published”.
The book published by Hazan editions—and very temporarily available in the Louvre bookshop in December 2019—it is written by Vincent Delieuvin, the chief curator of paintings at the Louvre, and Myriam Eveno and Elisabeth Ravaud from the Louvre’s laboratory, C2RMF. The museum’s director, Jean-luc Martinez of the booklet preface wrote, the answer to the question of attribution is presented categorically: “To mark the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the death of the artist in France, the Louvre Museum has organized a major retrospective which intends to offer a complete synthesis of his work. It is in this context that Salvator Mundi, formerly in the Cook Collection and now owned by the Ministry of Culture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, was studied by the museum and by the C2RMF in 2018. The results of the historical and scientific study presented in this publication allow us to confirm the attribution of the work to Leonardo da Vinci, an appealing hypothesis which was initially presented in 2010 and which has sometimes been disputed. Showing the painting alongside other works by the master from the Louvre is therefore a major event for studies of Leonardo and in the history of our museum.” The ensuing chapters support the positive attribution to the master. Delieuvin concludes that all the elements the Louvre has studied “invite us to privilege the idea of a work that is entirely autograph”. Eveno and Ravaud in their section also reach the same conclusion: “The examination of the Salvator Mundi seems to us to demonstrate that the painting was indeed executed by Leonardo…”
Where does the new owner keeps the painting ? That’s a mystery but they say that probably its in his private yaght “serene” in a special room and also that he is building a special museum for it. But, still once again has been disappeared Salvator Mundi ….. till a new announcement !
Salvator Mundi, worldwide was the bone of contention ! Many questions about authenticity. While from the other hand, experts made analyses, examinations, etc. and they finally confirmed the authenticity. Even the experts of Louvre Museum. But still are many that they dispute the authenticity. Many articles worldwide have been written, documentary, videos, etc. But for obviοus reasons it’s a part of peoples that does not want to admit it.
Artworks market is a stock exchange that sellers want to get higher and higher the prices and buyers want to degrade the value of the artworks. This is a continually “fight”. Unfortunately, victims are always the artworks !
The story of Salvator Mundi is long. A master piece from the greatest master Leonardo da Vinci is traveling through the time. From the time of creation till our days. Many intervention that most of them made by improper persons, brutal over-painting cleaning destroyed most of the authentic part of the painting. Even so this treasure is still existed.
And the story will go on ….
But so did we ever wonder, what is Salvator Mundi ? Did anyone had seen what is the depiction of it ? Can we understand it ? or we just pay attention and interesting about how many zero has anytime the final price of it.
Such a master artwork is more far than many zeroes …
Links Footnotes :
- HTTPS://SALVATORMUNDIREVISITED.COM/HISTORY-OF-THE-SALVATOR-MUNDI
- HTTPS://WWW.HISTORYOFINFORMATION.COM/DETAIL.PHP?ID=2924
- HTTPS://WWW.LEONARDODAVINCI.NET/SALVATOR-MUNDI.JSP#PRETTYPHOTO
- HTTPS://BIGTHINK.COM/HEALTH/DA-VINCI-EYE-PROBLEM/
- HTTPS://HERITAGESCIENCEJOURNAL.SPRINGEROPEN.COM/ARTICLES/10.1186/S40494-020-00382-3#CHANGE-HISTORY
- HTTPS://WWW.CHRISTIES.COM/EN/LOT/LOT-6110563
- HTTPS://WWW.ARTDEX.COM/SALVATOR-MUNDI-COMPLEX-HISTORY-BEHIND-LAST-LEONARDO-DA-VINCI/
- HTTPS://BIGTHINK.COM/HIGH-CULTURE/SALVATOR-MUNDI-LEONARDO-DA-VINCI/
- HTTPS://WWW.SMITHSONIANMAG.COM/SMART-NEWS/NEW-RESEARCH-SUGGESTS-PORTIONS-SALVATOR-MUNDI-WERE-NOT-PART-LEONARDO-DA-VINCIS-ORIGINAL-DESIGN-180976914/
- HTTPS://WWW.CHRISTIES.COM/FEATURES/SALVATOR-MUNDI-TIMELINE-8644-3.ASPX
- HTTPS://WWW.WSJ.COM/ARTICLES/FRESH-DETAILS-REVEAL-HOW-450-MILLION-DA-VINCI-WAS-LOST-IN-AMERICAAND-LATER-FOUND-1537305592
- HTTPS://WWW.WSJ.COM/ARTICLES/FRESH-DETAILS-REVEAL-HOW-450-MILLION-DA-VINCI-WAS-LOST-IN-AMERICAAND-LATER-FOUND-1537305592
- HTTPS://BIGTHINK.COM/HIGH-CULTURE/SALVATOR-MUNDI-LEONARDO-DA-VINCI/
- HTTPS://D-NB.INFO/1212911997/34
- HTTPS://WWW.NYTIMES.COM/2021/04/11/ARTS/DESIGN/SALVATOR-MUNDI-LOUVRE-LEONARDO.HTML