NewsVincent Van Gogh
Van Gogh detective discovers exact spot of artist's last work, painted just hours before his suicide
The spot—in a village north of Paris—now has a plaque linking it to Vincent's death
NewsJohannes Vermeer
Unknown masterpiece? Picture 'likely' based on lost Vermeer to be unveiled in Antwerp
A Young Woman with a Wine Glass and a Musician playing a Tenor Recorder could be a copy of a work by the great Dutch painter
NewsAntiquities & Archaeology
How Germany’s 4,000-year-old answer to Stonehenge shows that Brexit is 'nonsense'
Pömmelte, sacred site that was used by the ancient Unetice culture, is opening up to tourists
NewsDiscoveries
Cache of Russian avant-garde works surfaces in regional museum's basement
Art historian Andrey Sarabyanov is planning a new exhibition of forgotten pieces by Kandinsky, Rodchenko and Stepanova
NewsAntiquities & Archaeology
Relics in Kent church are remains of 1,400-year old Anglo Saxon princess, carbon dating suggests
If confirmed, Eanswythe's bones are the earliest identified remains of an English saint
NewsDiscoveries
Unknown Dürer drawing to be sold by London dealer
One of very few examples in private hands, the work from an American collection is coming to the market via Agnews
NewsDiscoveries
Newly attributed Artemisia Gentileschi painting of David and Goliath revealed in London
Restored work—with “Artemisia” signature—will be shown by conservation studio during major National Gallery exhibition
NewsClaude Monet
Monet for nothing: Musée Marmottan’s ‘self-portrait’ is downgraded
After a long-running debate, the picture, going on show at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam today, has been attributed to Charles Giron
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Is a Van Gogh self-portrait hidden in a London attic?
An intriguing letter suggests that Vincent made a very unusual sale to England
NewsDiscoveries
Like ‘Tutankhamun’s tomb’: first look inside emperor's sepulchre in 500 years reveals magnificent treasures
Discovery in Vienna's St Stephen's cathedral was made with photographs taken through a small hole in the marble
NewsDiscoveries
Stolen 'Klimt' found hidden in a wall will take a month to authenticate, officials say
Gardener discovered the painting behind a metal plate on an exterior wall at Italy's Ricci Oddi gallery
NewsDiscoveries
Conservator discovers secret scrawls hidden beneath Derek Jarman painting
Pleasures of Italy canvas on show at the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin throws light on late activist’s lovers and interests
NewsDiscoveries
Artist's signature and thumbprint among discoveries in Pieter de Hooch paintings
Revelations were made during research for the largest retrospective of the Dutch painter's work in the Netherlands
BlogDiary of an art historian
UK national museums could learn a lot from their regional cousins
When it comes to having a historian rummaging in their stores, smaller institutions tend to be more enthusiastic and accommodating
NewsDiscoveries
Revealed: the story behind the Gauguin paintings buried with a young boy in Tahiti
The artist befriended the child of his neighbours, and had given two paintings for the boy’s nursery
NewsDiscoveries
Sotheby's to offer newly discovered Mantegna drawing
Preparatory sketch for The Triumph of Caesar will go on sale in New York in January
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Uncovered: Van Gogh's first art teacher
First photo discovered of Anna Birnie, of Scottish descent, who served as a young governess for eight-year-old Vincent
NewsDiscoveries
'True Rembrandt relic' discovered in cesspit below artist's house
Clay pot used by Old Master to paint is now on show in Amsterdam's Rembrandt House Museum
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
New discoveries: Paul Signac painted watercolours of Van Gogh’s asylum
Signac, who offered to fight a duel over the Sunflowers, pays homage to his Dutch friend
NewsAntiquities & Archaeology
Possible unmapped chambers discovered near Tutankhamun’s tomb
Researchers have found two anomalies in Egypt's Valley of the Kings
NewsDiscoveries
Hidden Cupid resurfaces in one of Vermeer’s best-known works after two and a half centuries
Laboratory tests revealed "sensational" discovery that the figure in Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window was overpainted decades after the artist’s death
NewsLeonardo da Vinci
Portrait sketch of Leonardo da Vinci discovered in Britain’s Royal Collection
The drawing, believed to be one of only two contemporary images of the artist, will go on show for the first time at the Queen’s Gallery in London
NewsBrazil
Archaeological trove discovered beneath zoo heads to Rio de Janeiro’s National Museum
More than 30,000 imperial artefacts were found in the nearby RioZoo last week
NewsDiscoveries
Anthony Caro's drawings corrected by Henry Moore to go on show for first time
Exhibition at East Gallery of Norwich University of the Arts aims to demonstrate the relationship between the two artists
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Fake no more: poppy painting in US museum is by Van Gogh—and has a surprise under the surface
Still life at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford, Connecticut, is authenticated after decades hidden in storage
NewsLeonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci's thumbprint discovered on drawing in Royal Collection
The mark is “the most convincing candidate for an authentic Leonardo fingerprint” among the Queen’s 550 works by the great artist
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Who painted the mystery nude in the Van Gogh brothers' collection?
Museum specialist believes he has uncovered the identity of the artist—and his voluptuous muse
NewsDeaccessioning
Revealed: marquess of Northampton tried to buy Sekhemka statue before it was controversially sold off by UK museum
Ancient Egyptian sculpture was almost bought by the 7th marquess, whose predecessor donated it to the local museum in the 19th century
NewsDiscoveries
Did Pieter Bruegel the Elder create the earliest Scottish landscape?
Coastal rock formation in 16th-century engraving resembles the famous Bass Rock at the mouth of the Firth of Forth, art historian argues
BlogAdventures with Van Gogh
Mistaken identity: new discovery means there is only one known photograph of Vincent van Gogh
The childhood image that was assumed to be of Vincent is now believed to depict his brother Theo
NewsDiscoveries
Courbet's model for the Origin of the World discovered
It is now “99% certain” that dancer Constance Quéniaux is depicted in the infamous nude
NewsDiscoveries
Painting of courtesan by Kitagawa Utamaro—who influenced the Impressionists—goes on show for first time
Hanging scroll by the shunga master will be displayed in the British Museum’s revamped Japanese galleries
NewsConservation & Preservation
Relic of first-century pope found in a rubbish tip is donated to Westminster Cathedral
Rubbish collectors found the bone fragment of Clement I in London
NewsDiscoveries
Newly discovered Michaelina Wautier painting added to first major show on Baroque’s forgotten female master
And experts are convinced that “many more works will pop up”
NewsAuctions
Tom Thomson sketch hidden in Canadian basement sells for C$480,000 at auction, more than double its high estimate
The work’s owner, a retired nurse, chose not to attend the sale in person due to nerves “in case it was worth something”
NewsAntiquities & Archaeology
Man decapitated while fleeing volcano’s destruction of Pompeii
Excavation tells a poignant story of an unfortunate Roman
NewsDiscoveries
Emperor Constantine's giant finger found in the Louvre
Ancient object—initially believed to be a toe—perfectly fits the hand of ancient bronze statue in Rome's Musei Capitolini
NewsAuctions
Stored in a basement, Canadian woman’s painting turns out to be Tom Thomson sketch
The work is due to be auctioned in Toronto with a high estimate of $135,000—and will fund a Mediterranean cruise for the owner and her friend
ArchiveDiscoveries
Discovery of a prehistoric sculpture in Saudi Arabia could mean horses tamed in 7000BC
It’s a Late Stone Age horse, of course?
ArchiveArt market
Paintings dumped at charity shop make six figures
The paintings were appraised after a Goodwill employee spotted the pair
ArchiveFrancis Bacon
Bacon “rubbish” including sketches and diaries makes £1m at auction
An alternative end for the rubbish that was to be thrown out from Bacon’s famously chaotic studio at 7 Reese Mews in London
ArchiveDiscoveries
Stolen art discovered in reclusive collector’s estate
Christie’s and the Stair Galleries both cancelled sales as a result
ArchiveKazimir Malevich
Malevich painting finally authenticated
Traces of Malevich's signature found on 1913 painting
ArchiveArt market
Doubts cast on authorship of Goya’s “Black paintings”
University of Madrid discovery
ArchiveNazi Germany
Solid gold, fake Celtic cauldron found in lake
If deemed a Nazi object, it belongs to the Bavarian State
ArchiveUnesco
Unesco adopts a new Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage to protect shipwrecks lying in international waters
However, the US and UK say the it conflicts with existing maritime legislation and Russia, Norway, Turkey, and Venezuela vote no
ArchiveAntiquities & Archaeology
Commercial landowners in Britain almost always hand over to public museums archaeological discoveries made on their land, despite no legal obligation for them to do so. Their munificence has led to a chronic shortage of storage space.
This virtuous circle
ArchiveUnesco
Deliberation over ownership of submerged vessels and their booty at the bottom of the ocean leads to Unesco intervention
An estimated three million shipwrecks lay undiscovered. UNESCO is calling for a global treaty to protect them. Salvors say it is unrealistic and unworkable, despite developments in deep-sea exploration technology
ArchiveCambodia
Radar imaging reveals ancient Cambodian ruins
Evidence of an earlier culture is found in the jungle surrounding Angkor
ArchiveNational Trust
National Trust finds rare Gothic altarpiece in stables
Seven hundred year-old painting was dismissed as nineteenth-century
ArchiveAntiquities & Archaeology
This year’s top discoveries, as published in the State Cultural Relics Bureau’s weekly newspaper, plus the top ten projects of the past five years
The red-letter roll call of recent Chinese archaeology
ArchiveAntiquities & Archaeology
Lords Rothschild and Sainsbury act to protect Butrint
The British School at Rome and the Tirana Institute of Archaeology are excavating Albania’s most important site.
ArchiveCambodia
Pillaged Cambodian art sold at Sotheby’s and displayed in the Met
Despite being published last year by the International Council of Museums, severed stone heads are circulating in London and New York
ArchiveExhibitions
An exhibition at the Israel museum is the last chance to see objects excavated from the Sinai before their return to Egypt
Archaeology bows to the peace process
ArchiveAmedeo Modigliani
430 unknown drawings by Modigliani brought to light as the son of the artist's best friend releases a new book
The works were collected day by day, from 1907 to 1914, by Paul Alexandre during the artist’s stay in Paris
ArchiveSevso silver
Numerous parties claim the Sevso Silver Roman hoard valued at £100m belongs to them, entrenching themselves in the New York courts
Legal complexities ensue, with deceit, conspiracy and covert dealing surrounding the treasures history becoming certain