US museums lend masterpieces to major Caravaggio exhibit in Rome

By Father Matthew Gamber
Catholic News Service

ROME (CNS) -- Three Caravaggio masterpieces, originally painted in Rome but now part of U.S. museum collections, returned to Rome as part of a historic exhibit of the artist's work.

In a way, the paintings are on a pilgrimage back to their birthplace, said Elizabeth Lev, a Caravaggio expert and professor of art history at the Rome campuses of Duquesne University and the University of St. Thomas.

"Caravaggio's vision was carried across the ocean thanks to these works, but now these paintings are making a pilgrimage back to the city where they were born," Lev said.

Read further...