La riscoperta di un capolavoro

The La riscoperta di un capolavoro exhibition, celebrating the “reunion” of the Griffoni Polyptych painted by Francesco del Cossa and Ercole de’ Roberti, was due to open at Bologna’s Palazzo Fava on 12 March 2020; due to the Coronavirus lockdown, the launch was postponed to Monday 18 May 2020.

The complete Polyptych, comprising sixteen panels currently kept in nine different museums around the world, will go on show in Bologna for the first time since it was dismantled and sold in 1725.
Gathering together the sixteen surviving panels (representing over 90% of the complete polyptych) of one of the greatest early Italian Renaissance masterpieces after more than 300 years is an extraordinary historical, artistic and cultural opportunity not only for the people of Bologna, but the wider international public as a whole.

There are two parts to the exhibition: one section, curated by Mauro Natale in association with Cecilia Cavalca, focuses on the altarpiece dedicated to Saint Vincenzo Ferrer which Floriano Griffoni commissioned Ferrara-born Francesco del Cossa to produce between 1470-1472; the second, curated by Adam Lowe, Guendalina Damone and the Foundation team, features the work of the Factum Foundation and the importance of digital technology in conserving and sharing our cultural heritage.

Also on display are two masterpieces, Saint Peter and John the Baptist by Francesco del Cossa, restored as part of Restituzioni, the great modern patronage scheme which Intesa Sanpaolo launched thirty years ago.

The exhibition is part of a project created by Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio in Bologna and Genus Bononiae. Musei nella Città. Intesa Sanpaolo is Main Sponsor of the exhibition.