A painting of Titian, titled Last Supper, has been discovered hanging on the walls of a St Michael and All Angels Church in Ledbury — a market town with about 10,000 residents in western England. The Painting was there for the last 100 years. The painting have been created in Titian’s Workshop in Venice.
The painting measures about 12 feet by 5 feet. The discovery of the historic value of the painting came as an accident. Ronald Moore, an art historian and conservator, was called to work on another art piece found in the same church in Herefordshire.
Moore noticed that the painting was discolored and was not in a good condition. The painting was housed in the church since 1909. Three years ago, Moore was commissioned to research and restore the piece. He and his researcher Patricia Kenny spent some 11,000 hours researching the picture’s history, as well as around three months conserving it. The research revealed that the painting was produced in Tiziano Vecelio’s workshop, the legendary Italian Renaissance master painter, more popularly known as Titian.
After removing centuries of discolored varnish, they made some incredible discoveries. As well as finding an all-important signature, they identified some of the faces as portraits. The conservator said that Titian took about 20 years to complete the masterpiece. The timeframe that Moore pointed out was between 1560 and 1580. Titian died in 1576 and the Last Supper painting in the Herefordshire Church was among the unfinished pieces.
He believes much of the damage may have been caused by a “careless restoration” after the painting first arrived in England in 1775. Several layers of glaze, together with the damage, would have led to changes and discoloration in the painting.
Moore and his researcher discovered that the signature of Titian was quaintly hidden in the “jug.” More research revealed that a Venetian convent commissioned the work. Around two centuries later, an English gentleman, John Skippe, bought the painting. For many years, the painting hung at the upper Hall in Ledbury, and later was given to the church as a gift.
Moore will not comment on how much the painting might be worth, but said: “It’s not in good condition but it is unique. It’s the first chance we’ve had in art history to be able to look at a Titian workshop painting done over quite a long period of time.”
