Spain unveils ‘lost Caravaggio’ that nearly sold for 1,500 euros

The artwork was discovered just before it was due to be put up for sale in 2021 for 1,500 euros ($1,800 at the time) following an attribution error.

A painting by Italian master Caravaggio, once mistakenly thought to be by an unknown artist and nearly auctioned off for a song, has been unveiled at Madrid’s Prado Museum.

Painted between 1605 and 1609, the dark, atmospheric canvas depicts a bloodied Jesus wearing a crown of thorns, his hands tied, as he is presented to the crowd by the Roman governor Pontius Pilate just before his crucifixion.

“The painting is one of around only 60 known works by Caravaggio in existence, and thus one of the most valuable old master artworks in the world,” read a press release from the museum published on Monday.

“Since its reappearance at auction three years ago, Ecce Homo [Latin for “Behold the Man”] has represented one of the greatest discoveries in the history of art, inspiring an unprecedented speed of consensus around its authentication,” it added.

In 2021, a Madrid auction house had been due to put the canvas under the hammer with an opening price of 1,500 euros ($1,800 at the time), mistakenly attributing it to an artist from the circle of 17th-century Spanish painter Jose de Ribera.