The mysterious Master of Castelsardo: A forgotten Renaissance giant

The Master of Castelsardo, an anonymous late 15th-century painter active between 1490 and 1510, is the subject of a renewed art-historical investigation. First identified in 1926 by art historian Carlo Aru, the artist's works—altarpieces and panels—are scattered across Sardinia, Corsica, and Barcelona. His style blends late Gothic and Renaissance influences, drawing from Antonello da Messina, Jaime Huguet, Nicolò Corso, and possibly Pedro Berruguete. Scholars have proposed identifications with Gioacchino Cavaro or Martí Torner, but no consensus exists. In a 2014 study, Luigi Agus reconstructed the artist's training along Mediterranean trade routes linking Sardinia, Corsica, Liguria, and Catalonia. Key works include the Madonna in trono in Castelsardo Cathedral, the Retablo della Porziuncola fragments in Cagliari's pinacoteca, the Retablo della Trinità in the Basilica of Saccargia, and the Retablo di Tuili (1500) in San Pietro a Tuili, commissioned by Giovanni and Violante Santa Cruz. The Polittico di Ardara (1515) by Giovanni Muru is also attributed to the same artistic circle.