Hide Caravaggio

This essay begin for a specification this is that stems from a conference that Maurizio Marini(1942-2011), the major  student in Europe of Caravaggio, this is Michelangelo Merisi(1571-1610), called Caravaggio, very famous painter in Rome and in Italy, that has influenced much painters during the first years of 17^th century; anyway among  the painting of Caravaggio one seemed lost during 1945, in Flakturm Friedrichshain in Berlin, but already it has seated to the Kaiser-Friedrich Museum; this painting not has destroyed during the second world war, but has stolen  from a soldier of red army and Martini informed us that this painting is the original first version of saint Matthew and an angel. The controversy about the refusal of this painting has involved very much historical art men, for the nude foots, but also in the second version the foots are nude; Marini has explained this refusal for the figure of angel why? Because the young angel is truly the nephew of cardinal Contrail, that was costumer of this painting, and Caravaggio portrayed the nephew of cardinal, this is Francis, then very young, dressed very short, it is has determined the refusal; the presence of nephew have determined the scandal, because this painting is in year 1602 two years after the jubilee, and the costumer was a cardinal, the scandal would be very great. The theft  there was in 1945 a soldier brought  this painting to Moscow, where today is hide, why the Russian not goes back this painting? Simple because the Germany could ask the compensation because this painting was stolen and not given, hence among the damages would cost very much, and the Russian hasn’t the sufficient money; anyway the image of this painting on internet said that this painting was destroyed, but truly it is the original. Giovanni Baglione(1573-1644) painter and enemy of Caravaggio said that the painting was refused  and removed from the altar of chapel  because vulgar and nobody has liked it; naturally the Baglione the author of the book The life of painters, sculptors and architects, published 1642, has had motives very personal  to give this judge, since Caravaggio during a witness in court said: “I don’t know nobody painter that judge Baglione a painter”; after Giovanni Bellori(1613-1696), a Italian writer, repeated same question and he said also that  the figure of saint was indecorous, because it seems a common people; this opinion was used from very much historical art men, because other weren’t , but thank to Marini we know where is the original and because was refused.

Alessandro Lusana