Madonna: Will Brando's masterpiece return to its Corsican land?

Brando's Madonna may be living her last hours away from her land

Madonna: Will Brando's masterpiece return to its Corsican land?

Brando's Madonna may be living her last hours away from her land. In any case, this is what Michel Vergé-Franceschi and many Corsicans hope, who are mobilizing to recover the work and bring it back to Brando, in Haute-Corse, as our colleagues from Parisian tell us. To do this, they will have to win the painting at auction, during a sale organized in Paris on Friday, March 31.

This altarpiece is a 15th century masterpiece. It is a 2 meter high painting representing the Virgin and her child and which had been commissioned by the Corsican Franciscan convent of Brando from Italian artists, Simone da Firenze and Rocco di Bartolommeo, in 1474. But this one This was sold and has belonged since 1839 to a family from Lyon. Therefore, since the Corsicans learned that it was separating from the Madonna, the hope of seeing the painting return to its island has continued to grow.

Also, the professor emeritus of Corsican history Michel Vergé-Franceschi has made his accounts: the painting being estimated at 300,000 euros, "if each inhabitant of Corsica pays one euro, the Madonna of Brando will be able to return to the island". However, he calls on "island patrons and those of the diaspora" to mobilize more widely to put all the chances on Corsica's side. And he has strong support by his side: the Region claims to have provisioned 400,000 euros to try to win the bet.

If the miracle occurs, the Madonna should be exhibited at the museum in Bastia, a few kilometers from her original birthplace. The competition promises to be fierce, however, as the painting is exceptional and prized throughout the world.