Two works by a Renaissance master have been hiding in plain sight within the Vatican for almost 500 years. The discovery of the paintings’ true origin was made when a restoration of a Vatican room designed by Raphael revealed that two allegorical figures, which had been attributed to the great artist’s students, were actually executed by Raphael himself.
According to an article at hyperallergenic.com, the frescoes in the Vatican Museum’s Hall of Constantine have never received as much attention as those in the museum’s other Raphael rooms, because they were thought to have been completed by the artist’s workshop after Raphael’s untimely death at the age of 37 in 1520.
Recent restorations showed that two figures in the fresco “are of a much higher quality than what’s around them,” according to art historian Arnold Nesselrath.
The first, wearing a blue gown, and seated to the left of a portrait of Clement I, represents “Friendship,” and the other figure, representing “Justice,” holds a scale amidst a fresco of emperor Constantine receiving the word that he would emerge victorious from his forthcoming battle.
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