A new French feature-length documentary on the Salvator Mundi seems to have solved one of the key mysteries surrounding the enigmatic and controversial painting: why it never appeared in the Musée du Louvre’s blockbuster Leonardo da Vinci show. Antoine Vitkine’s film, which The Art Newspaper has gained exclusive access to, is entitled The Savior for Sale and is released on 13 April. In the film, an anonymous senior official in French President Emmanuel Macron’s government, codenamed “Jacques”, tells Vitkine that the Louvre’s extensive scientific examination of the painting, conducted in secret, concluded that Leonardo da Vinci himself “only contributed” to the picture, and that its “authenticity” could not be confirmed.

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This is my first post on Relevant. This article seems relevant to Relevant's vision & mission, as I understand it. And I'm curious to watch the documentary feature. Meanwhile, I've been following the story since inception [https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/updated-a-long-lost-leonardo-2-425/](https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/updated-a-long-lost-leonardo-2-425/) The valorization of art by museums has for centuries not been without corruption. I wonder whether an older article might be relevant to post here as a New Post ( yes ? no ? ) … meanwhile, I'll post here it as background on Alison Cole's article ————— MONEY FROM NOTHING The Invention of the ‘Salvator Mundi’ Or, How to Turn a $1,000 Art-Auction Pickup Into a $450 Million Masterpiece. By Matthew Shaer [https://www.vulture.com/2019/04/salvator-mundi-leonardo-da-vinci.html?curator=alphaideas](https://www.vulture.com/2019/04/salvator-mundi-leonardo-da-vinci.html?curator=alphaideas)