Controversial Caravaggio Attribution Sparks Resignation at Brera

A disputed painting of Judith Beheading Holofernes, discovered in a Toulouse attic in 2014 and presented as a lost Caravaggio, has ignited a fierce controversy at Milan's Pinacoteca di Brera. The work is displayed alongside a version attributed to Louis Finson from Gallerie d'Italia in Naples and Caravaggio's authenticated 'Supper at Emmaus.' Brera director James M. Bradburne accepted the owner's condition to label the painting as Caravaggio, despite scholarly doubts. This led to the resignation of Giovanni Agosti from the scientific committee. The exhibition, euphemistically called a 'dialogue,' includes two certain Finson works and an additional Magdalene from Paolo Volponi's collection. Critics question the museum's endorsement of a private owner's attribution, noting that Rome's Palazzo Barberini and Naples' Capodimonte Museum refused to host the piece. The painting is under a French state export ban until 2017, with an insured value of €120,000, suggesting a market price around €120 million. Expert Eric Turquin manages the sale. The controversy highlights tensions between private interests and public museum ethics.