Rubens was accused of buying a cheap wood

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Rubens was accused of buying a cheap wood

Painting by Flemish artist Peter Paul Rubens "Cain kills Abel" (1608-09) was not written to order, but for sale. According to the publication The Art Newspaper, the conclusion made by experts from the Courtauld Gallery in London, which involved 11 months of restoration work.

Previously it was known that Rubens created the painting after his eight-year stay in Italy (1600-1608), but researchers on the analysis of the tree (the picture was painted on a wooden board) failed to establish that the artist wrote to her almost immediately after his arrival in Antwerp. There he went, having received news that his mother was seriously ill.

During the restoration work was, in particular, it was found that oak boards used for sapwood (the upper layers of wood). As the sap was cheaper material, the researchers concluded that the painter himself bought a board for a picture. In that case, if the picture is written in order, the customer typically buy higher-quality materials.

In addition, conservators, studied painting in the infrared, they saw the picture in the lower layers at the site, which shows the tree line, uncharacteristic manner of Rubens. On this basis they suggested that the landscape could be written by another author.

Painting by Rubens again join the main museum in February 2012. Courtauld Institute of Art has an important collection of French Impressionist and Old Masters. In addition to the paintings of Rubens in the museum there are works by Cranach, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Anthony van Dyck and others.

Artists in the Renaissance used different kinds of wood boards for panels. Among the Flemish painters were distributed oak boards, while in Italy prefer poplar, willow and lime.

http://lenta.ru/news/2012/01/18/rubens/