The Paper's reporter Qian Chengxi
On Tuesday, local time, the only villa in the world with Caravaggio's murals was auctioned online, but because of its high price, it was eventually auctioned because no one bid.
This villa is located in Rome and is called "Villa Aurora". With a starting price of 471 million euros, or about 3.38 billion yuan, it is also the most expensive property ever sold. Its biggest selling point is the mural painted by Caravaggio, which is unique in the world in the villa.
Villas to be auctioned are located in Rome
As a master painter of the Renaissance, Caravaggio had a major influence on Baroque art, but his early birth and long forgotten years were rediscovered until the 1920s, so his surviving works are rare and particularly precious. The frescoes of the villa were commissioned for his alchemy room by the villa's first owner, Cardinal Francisco Maria del Monte, in 1597, and neither of them expected that more than four hundred years later, the fresco would become the only surviving Caravaggio fresco in the world.
Based on Greek mythology, the murals depict the Zodiac and ancient Greek gods such as Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto, all of whom Caravaggio is said to have painted in his own form. The mural alone is valued at 310 million euros, or about 2.22 billion yuan.
Fresco details
It is worth mentioning that this fresco was later covered by a new ceiling and was also forgotten by later villa owners, and it was not known again until the end of the 1960s.
The gods surround the earth
In addition to caravaggio's frescoes, the villa has other ceiling frescoes by other Baroque masters, including Giovanni Francisco Barbieri, an important Baroque master known to the general public under the name "Gulcino". He painted the ancient Roman goddess of dawn "Aurora" on the frescoes in the main hall, hence the name of the villa.
Gulcino's "Goddess of Dawn"
After the villa went into auction, more than 38,000 Italians petitioned online, asking the Italian government to buy the villa so that the public could appreciate the art treasures. However, according to Italian law, the Italian government can only buy the property at auction price after the auction. The Italian government is likely not to have enough money to buy it, although it will be auctioned again in April and cut the price by about 20%.
In addition to these frescoes, buyers will receive many priceless antiques and works of art, including a handwritten letter from Marie Antoinette, Queen of Louis XVI, and a statue in the garden by Michelangelo.
However, according to the additional terms of the auction, the buyer must also be responsible for the maintenance of the villa for about 11 million euros (about 79 million yuan).
The current owner of the villa is Rita Bonkopani Ludovisi, who inherited the site after the death of her husband, Prince Niccolò Bonkopani Ludovisi, in 2018. This family has owned the villa for almost 400 years.
Rita Bonkopani Ludovisi in the villa garden
Rita Bunkopani Ludovisi is from Texas, USA, and has worked as an actress and journalist. After marrying and moving to Italy in 2003, in her words, she "dedicated her life to the restoration of Villa Aurora".
"The villa at that time was in disrepair." She said.
Over the years, her villa has been open to art scholars to facilitate their research. In addition, Rita also organizes a number of small private tours from which to obtain some expenses to support the maintenance of the villa.
Corey Brennan, a professor of classical literature at Rutgers University who has been studying the art collection of the Bunkopani Ludowisi family for more than a decade, said there was still much to be discovered in the villa, such as non-intrusive radar detections that showed large-scale Roman remains beneath the villa.
Editor-in-Charge: Ying Xu
Proofreader: Zhang Liangliang