History Sistine Madonna

sistine madonna-inspired partisan madonna of minsk mikhail savitsky on belarusian postage stamp.

sistine madonna rescued destruction during bombing of dresden in world war ii, conditions in saved , subsequent history of piece subject of controversy. painting stored, other works of art, in tunnel in saxon switzerland; when red army encountered them, took them. painting temporarily removed pillnitz, transported in box on tented flatcar moscow. there, sight of madonna brought soviet leading art official mikhail khrapchenko declare pushkin museum able claim place among great museums of world.

in 1946, painting went temporarily on restricted exhibition in pushkin, along of other treasures soviets had retrieved. in 1955, after death of joseph stalin, soviets decided return art germany, purpose of strengthening , furthering progress of friendship between soviet , german peoples. there followed international controversy, press around world stating dresden art collection had been damaged in soviet storage. soviets countered had in fact saved pieces. tunnel in art stored in saxon switzerland climate controlled, according soviet military spokesperson, power had failed when collection discovered , pieces exposed humid conditions of underground. soviet paintings partisan madonna of minsk mikhail savitsky , and saved world remembers mai dantsig based on sistine madonna.

stories of horrid conditions sistine madonna had been saved began circulate. but, reported artnews in 1991, russian art historian andrei chegodaev, had been sent soviets germany in 1945 review art, denied it:

it insolent, bold-faced lie.... in gloomy, dark cave, 2 [actually four] soldiers, knee-deep in water, carrying sistine madonna upright, slung on cloths, easily, barely using 2 fingers. couldn’t have been lifted dozen healthy fellows... because framed.... connected imaginary rescue lie.

artnews indicated commander of brigade retrieved madonna described stories lie , in letter literaturnaya gazeta published in 1950s, indicating in reality, ‘sistine madonna,’ other pictures, ...was in dry tunnel, there various instruments monitored humidity, temperature, etc. but, whether true or not, stories had found foothold in public imagination , have been recorded fact in number of books.