Stories 1 - 20 | Next >>
20 Knew It Was a Suspected Michelangelo. Now It's Gone
16th-century painting was about to be formally studied to see whether it was by the master
(Newser) - An expert was to survey a painting some believe to be a lost work of Michelangelo at a church outside of Brussels on Thursday, though you can now consider the visit canceled. Pastor Jan Van Raemdonck—who had told only 20 people about the possible discovery—reported the painting missing...
Secret Room Where Michelangelo Hid, Sketched to Be Opened
It has been closed since its discovery in 1975 to keep the artwork safe
(Newser) - For two months in 1530, Michelangelo hid in a secret underground room beneath the Medici Chapels, "fill[ing] the walls with drawings" to forget his fears, as he later recalled. He had been commissioned by the Medicis, the most powerful family in Florence, to build the chapels—a mausoleum for...
Paintings of Michelangelo Reveal His Malady
Researchers say he had osteoarthritis
(Newser) - For centuries it has been thought that Michelangelo suffered from gout in later life, which was at the time used as a catch-all phrase to include all forms of arthritis. Researchers are reporting in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine that the famous artist instead had osteoarthritis. It'...
'Michelangelo of Butt Injections' Convicted of Murder
Botched injection killed London college student
(Newser) - A former madam who bragged of doing black-market "body sculpting" on thousands of women was convicted yesterday of murder in the death of a dancer whose heart stopped after nearly half a gallon of silicone was injected into her buttocks. Padge-Victoria Windslowe's colorful testimony during her Philadelphia trial...
Vatican Now Reveals 1997 Michelangelo Theft
Priceless document was snatched nearly 20 years ago
(Newser) - Is life borrowing plots from Dan Brown books? The Vatican yesterday confirmed that a letter from Michelangelo himself was stolen from its archives and a $108,000 ransom is being sought in exchange for it and a second document, NBC News reports. According to Italian newspaper Il Messaggero , the priceless...
Clue in Drawing May Prove Big Michelangelo Discovery
Indicates 2 bronzes are only such surviving sculptures by artist
(Newser) - Two sculptures of nude men—one young, one older—atop "ferocious" panthers might seem attention-grabbing of their own accord, but the pair are generating buzz for another reason entirely: "Compelling evidence" indicates they were crafted by Michelangelo, according to a press release from Cambridge University. If that's...
Sistine Chapel Private Concert Goes to ... Porsche
It's part of automaker's tour of Italy for car owners
(Newser) - Michelangelo didn't know it at the time, but his work in the Sistine Chapel would one day provide the backdrop for a sacred gathering of Porsche enthusiasts. Tomorrow, those who shelled out about $6,400 a head to the automaker will hear a concert of classical music in the...
Downfall of Michelangelo's David : Weak Ankles?
Downfall of Michelangelo's David: Weak Ankles?
Researchers: Masterpiece could collapse
(Newser) - Michelangelo's David has two bum ankles—and surgery isn't helping the masterpiece. Despite plastering over micro-fractures that have appeared over the years, David's ankles are so bad researchers fear the marble Golaith-slayer could soon collapse under his own massive 5.5-ton weight, reports the BBC by way...
Italy Fumes Over Rifle Ad With Statue of David
ArmaLite sparks row over ad for $3K rifle
(Newser) - Italians are a wee bit upset about an ArmaLite ad that shows a massive $3,000 rifle cradled in the arms of Michelangelo's David, the BBC reports. "The image of David, armed, offends and infringes the law," tweeted culture minister Dario Franceschini. He vowed to take action...
Feud Rekindled Over Long-Lost 'Michelangelo'
New theory traces history of restored 'San Giovannino'
(Newser) - In 1930, a Spanish historian suggested a sculpture of St. John the Baptist was the work of Michelangelo—a long-lost piece said to have been created in the late 15th century. Since then, nearly every expert has dismissed the theory, and the statue was shattered into 14 pieces during the...
'Lost Michelangelo' Found on Oxford Wall
Italian expert spots unknown masterpiece in Jesuit residence
(Newser) - A previously unknown painting by Michelangelo has been hanging on the wall of an Oxford University residence for Jesuit scholars since the 1930s, a respected Italian expert claims. Infrared technology has revealed that the painting at Campion Hall, previously believed to have been the work of Michelangelo's lesser-known contemporary...
New Train Line Could Collapse David
Vibrations from construction of new high-speed train line problematic
(Newser) - Progress could spell major trouble for Michelangelo's David: The construction of a high-speed train line beneath Florence could cause the statue to collapse, reports the Telegraph . The statue is criss-crossed with micro-fissures, especially in the left ankle area and carved tree stump he stands upon. Construction on the tunnel, due...
Model for Michelangelo's Pieta Found
12-inch sculpture was covered with tape
(Newser) - A US art historian says he's found the model for Michelangelo's great statue the Pieta at the Vatican, the Daily Telegraph reports. An Italian art collector picked up the 12-inch terracotta model at an antiques shop; before restoration, it was covered in paint and dotted with Scotch tape. But...
Family Kept Michelangelo Painting Behind the Couch
Buffalo's Kober family called it 'the Mike'
(Newser) - They called the painting "The Mike," because legend had it that it was an original Michelangelo painting—but the Kober family didn't really believe it. When their kids knocked it off the wall with a tennis ball, they wrapped it up and stashed it behind the couch,...
Scientists Spot Secret in Michelangelo God
Sistine painting contains brain diagram
(Newser) - Michelangelo used the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel to conceal a message the church would have found blasphemous, according to a pair of neuroanatomists. God's oddly lumpy neck in The Separation of Light from Darkness, a detail that has long puzzled art historians, is actually a completely accurate depiction of...
Bad-Boy Caravaggio Hotter Than Michelangelo
'Antihero' with no personal records is 'perfect Rorschach' for out time
(Newser) - Watch out, Michelangelo—it appears that the depraved, scandalous, and murderous Italian painter Caravaggio resonates with modern audiences a tad more than the paragon of Renaissance beauty. That's the opinion of a historian who surveyed scholarly matter on both painters over the last 50 years—books, papers, catalogs—and...
Mona Lisa Suffered Sky-High Cholesterol
Pathologist identifies sick subjects of the Renaissance
(Newser) - Leonardo da Vinci's model for the Mona Lisa was smiling despite some serious health problems, according to an Italian pathologist applying his knowledge to Renaissance painting. Professor Vito Franco of the University of Palermo says a tumor on her hand and apparent buildups of fatty acids around her eyes show...
Met Bares 1st Work by Michelangelo, 12
'St. Anthony Tormented by Demons' amazed young apprentice's master
(Newser) - A work believed to be Michelangelo's first painting has made its American debut at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the New York Times reports. St. Anthony Tormented by Demons, a customized copy of a German print, is thought to have been painted in 1487 when Michelangelo was a 12-year-old apprentice...
Italy's $4M 'Michelangelo' Triggers Furor
(Newser) - Did Michelangelo actually create a small (16-inch) wooden carving of a crucified Jesus or did the Italian government get taken for a $4 million ride? Some experts believe passionately that the piece, now on exhibit in Naples, is the work of the master. But as the BBC reports, others blast...
David Could Crumble: Engineer
Years of traffic, tourism put Michelangelo's marble masterpiece at risk
(Newser) - Michelangelo's famed statue of David is in danger of collapse and must be stabilized, an Italian engineering professor tells ANSA. Failure isn't imminent, though a major earthquake could topple the Renaissance masterwork on display in Florence. Small cracks in the statue, thought to have emerged during the 500...