After hundreds of years of debate, a 15th-century portrait has been discovered that may finally settle the question of what Christopher Columbus looked like, an art historian says.
"It's a very important discovery," Maurizio Marini said, referring to a 17- by 23-inch oil painting of Columbus that he attributed to Spanish artist Pedro Berruguete (1450-1504).Marini said there is no proof Columbus sat for the portrait, but the painting is the only existing portrait of the explorer done while he was alive. Berruguete also was the official portrait painter at the court of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Spanish monarchs who sponsored Columbus' voyages, he noted.
The painting shows Columbus to be less portly than often portrayed, with deep-set green eyes, red hair, pronounced cheekbones and a long, aquiline nose. He is pictured with the pageboy haircut he traditionally is given but without the flowing curls sometimes seen.
Documentation of the work's discovery and authentication is to be published in the December issue of "Columbus `92," the official magazine for the Genoese celebrations of the 500th anniversary of Columbus' first voyage to the Americas. Many experts think Columbus was a native of Genoa.
Until now, a portrait in the Civic Museum of Como, Italy, was considered the most accurate picture of Columbus, since it was painted from a description given by the explorer's son, Marini said.
Other depictions in existence were made either from memory or legend.
The Berruguete work has never been part of a public exhibition, Marini said. It was held in a private collection until it was sold last year to American art dealer Francesco Ribaudo of Chicago.
Marini is a specialist on Baroque and medieval Italian art who has written several books on the artist Caravaggio and has taught at the University of Rome.