Painting In Small Florida Museum Believed To Have Been Stolen By Nazis In WWII (PHOTO)

No one ever suspected that this painting would be the subject of international controversy.

The Mary Brogan Museum of Art & Science in Tallahassee, Fla. has been ordered not to return one of the 50 pieces loaned to it by a Milan museum after authorities learned that it might have been stolen by the Nazis during WWII, according to USA Today. The subject of the controversy is the 473-year-old painting, Christ Carrying the Cross Dragged by a Rogue, by Renaissance artist Girolamo Romano.

You can see the painting for yourself here, on the museum's website, or scroll down.

The museum's CEO, Chucha Barber, was notified by the US attorney's Office in July that the painting may have been stolen, according to the Tallahassee Democrat. The Brogan has permission to display the painting until at least November, while the US and Italian governments resolve the issue.

Barber doesn't quite know how the government came to learn of the painting's controversial past, but USA Today provided a little history into the work:

It is believed that the Nazi-sympathetic French Vichy government seized and sold the work in question, when the Gentili family -- the Jewish family that owned the masterwork -- fled Nazi occupation during the war.

Barber has since received a phone call from Lionel Salem, a grandson of the painting's owner who lives in London. He thanked her for taking care of the painting.

According to the News-Press, the exhibit is part of a five-month, $500,000 campaign to raise money for the museum's day-to-day expenses. This controversy is sure to help them get closer to that goal.

The Painting (Courtesy The Mary Brogan Museum of Art and Science):

Comments

[DaniFoxy]

10:35 AM on 09/09/2011

I passed a wino in the park yesterday. He was eating a bunch of grapes. I was like, "Dude, you gotta wait".

[DaniFoxy]

09:33 AM on 09/09/2011

Holy crap... is the dude's shirt actually painted? That is amazing... of course I am high as a friggin ite right now, but that is amazing!

[GraphicMatt]

10:21 AM on 09/09/2011

Did somebody do a little wake and bake this morning?

[DaniFoxy]

10:23 AM on 09/09/2011

Hell yeah baby! Got nothing to do today but smile!

[DaniFoxy]

10:24 AM on 09/09/2011

I really can't stop looking at that shirt... it's like they glued a real silk shirt... hey, is that the puffy shirt???

[Thinking about it]

08:21 AM on 09/09/2011

Jesus said; "Render to Caesar what is Caeser....."
find the family who owned it and the Florida Museum that has possesion of it should pay that family an appraised value, keep the painting and share it with the public.
You must admit, that's an incredible work of art. I'm overwhelmed by the fabric of Jesus' Garment. What artistry!
Shame on the Nazis for this and all that they did.

[GraphicMatt]

10:23 AM on 09/09/2011

The Florida Museum has it on loan from a museum in Milan, but you'd have known that if you had read past the first sentance.

[Nonpc]

06:08 AM on 09/09/2011

This is a wonderful painting of our Only Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. America is glad it is now safe and on display for us all to see and enjoy and love. God Bless America. In God We Trust.

[Tree S-B]

04:07 PM on 09/09/2011

Seriously?

[Mike J England]

04:36 AM on 09/09/2011

im always wondering how a man born and lived in the middle east is so pale? And having blue eyes when all in the middle east have brown!

[GraphicMatt]

10:26 AM on 09/09/2011

Because Renaissance Italians neither knew what a middle easterner from 1500 years earlier looked like nor cared. It was common for artists to represent Jesus as someone from their own day and age. This is Renaissance art, not reality.

[Rocks911]

01:16 PM on 09/10/2011

Exactly

[madame fate]

10:50 AM on 09/10/2011

Considering that most art painted during that time was commissioned by the Roman Catholic church or very wealthy patrons, the subjects of 'holy' paintings would reflect the tastes of the church or the patrons who paid the artist to depict their subjects to their liking.

[European1919]

03:29 AM on 09/09/2011

Since the nazis never invaded the USA, the fact that the painting is now in Florida suggest that someone besides the nazis must have been busy as a thief.

[GraphicMatt]

10:28 AM on 09/09/2011

The painting is on loan from a museum in Milan. Says so right there in the 2nd sentance.

[azoreanjewels]

01:22 AM on 09/09/2011

You guy's are arguing just because the man depicted in the photo as Jesus looks like a real human being. Funny.... I don't remember America once being mentioned in the bible so good riddance to your theories

[splintercottage]

01:13 AM on 09/09/2011

This is bizarre. property is recovered that was illegally taken by force and people think its owner is not entiled to the return of his property?

[bansheemarc]

12:45 AM on 09/09/2011

The museum that the painting was at sure seemed very excited about the whole thing and the gratuitous rear kissing was a bit much:

"This single painting, stunning in its beauty and now made more 'viewable' by the incredible story behind its modern odyssey, hopefully will be the catalyst to drive more attention to the Brogan's priceless value to our community. This is a time for generous benefactors -- private citizen and corporate -- to open their hearts and wallets to literally "save the Brogan." And, lastly, our region and state and country owe a major debt of gratitude to our own U.S. Attorney, Pamela Marsh, and her intrepid staff, for the behind-the-scenes brilliant courageous and legal/diplomatic work in which they have been engaged to ensure that justice is done".

[speedydan79]

12:41 AM on 09/09/2011

To me this beautiful painting represents the triumph of Western Art over those who, like the Nazis, would pervert it. That is has survived intact through history gives pause for thought.

[keezze]

12:36 AM on 09/09/2011

Im sick and tired of nazi stolen treasure enriching the thiefts over and over, Return what you stole. The USA rebuilt germany at tax payers exence to the tune of trillions. The Vichy govt as well as all co conspiritors and thiefs the world over should be put in jail, but at minimum all stolen Jewish art, money, jewels, books property must be returned. And if their are no owners living it must go to Israel.

[madame fate]

11:11 AM on 09/10/2011

Sadly, there are many works of art that will never be returned to the owners or their surviving relatives. There needs to be some sort of proof of ownership. Thankfully, the nazis were big on paperwork and kept tons of records of what they did/stole but many artworks will never be legally claimed for lack of credible proof of ownership. Bombs and fires destroyed many important papers.

Not all artwork that was stolen belonged to the jews. My family were not jews but Roman Catholic Poles. My grandfather's entire family - All of his relatives (109 people!) except his brother, who was operated on by dr Mengele w/o anesthesia, BTW and survived the ordeal - were killed at Auschwitz. None of their artwork will ever be reclaimed because we cannot show good enough proof of ownership.

Should their belongings be sent to Israel, too? I hope not. I would rather the artwork be in museums all over the world for people to enjoy.

[calderasf]

12:17 AM on 09/09/2011

Just read a book on the topic. The Nazi's stole over 1 million art objects at a value of 20.5 billion greater then the conbined worth of USA art at that time.

[mrjustindefiant]

11:23 PM on 09/08/2011

I am kinda curious why a Jewish family would own a painting like this?

[GraphicMatt]

10:30 AM on 09/09/2011

Because it is an amazing work of art from the Renaissance period by a renowned master. Are only Catholics allowed to own Renaissance art? Are only Catholics allowed to appreciate beauty?

[Tree S-B]

04:10 PM on 09/09/2011

It does seem a bit strange but the vast majority of Renaissance art is religious art and clearly the person who bought this had a good eye and wanted a quality piece of work from a famous period in Art History.

[overit345]

11:02 PM on 09/08/2011

Sure give the guy the painting back if he wants it so bad now after all these years... but charge him for storage and upkeep. I'm sure the musems have done a lot of work to keep that painting in good shape. A lot of work that cost a lot of money that he would have had to pay otherwise. He should not get it for just nothing. The musems are out a lot of money for this painting. They should be allowed to recover the cost by charging him for taking care of it. What shape would it have been in otherwise? Would it be worth the money it is now? If your gonna be greedy pay for what you get.

[fwspokane]

11:22 PM on 09/08/2011

Uhhhhh, it was stolen. How about charging the costs to those who stole it? Namely, the government of Germany.

[calderasf]

12:22 AM on 09/09/2011

Well, the person who wrote the comment doesn't understand what stealing is and they probably killed the owner and his family just for fun. Should he be charged for the bullets or gas they used to kill them too? And to the response the reply Gov't of Germany is not the villain is was the Nazi party which ended in 1945.

[woodbutcherjohn]

03:29 AM on 09/09/2011

How can you charge them? The Nazi government no longer exists.

[Margaret Penny Wood]

01:04 AM on 09/09/2011

They stole it. When someone has committed a criminal act you don't pay them for upkeep. The Nazi's stole millions of dollars worth of artwork from Jewish families and much of it never was found. The artwork that does surface should be returned to family members of those who actually owned the art. Hitler actually wanted to destroy all art by van Gogh, Gauguin, Matisse, Picasso and others in the Fauvist and Impressionist movements because he thought them to be "decadent." Some of his officers did not agree and hid them, thank goodness.

[drdiaz2019]

10:49 PM on 09/08/2011

Can someone answer me without being mean?
I'm curious to know why a Jewish family would own this painting. I understand that all people can have whatever type of art they chose to put in there homes, but it's ironic isn't it?

[expeditor97]

05:43 AM on 09/09/2011

ther are jews who believe in Christ as a savior."Messianic Jews".......Then there are alot of jews who believe Jesus existed and was a bible scholar but not the Son of God....But most only recognize the old testement "Torah" and completely discount the new testament.

[GraphicMatt]

10:32 AM on 09/09/2011

Messianic Jews are not Jews.

[GraphicMatt]

10:24 AM on 09/13/2011

I assure you that my nose is neither big nor crooked. Sorry to disappoint you that I am not a "big, crooked nosed Jew".

[Bruce Wicks]

06:06 AM on 09/09/2011

No. It is not ironic. Though the Jews do not consider Christ the promised Messiah of the Old Testament the family was apparently well off and collected fine art. The subject of the painting would not have been as important to them as the artist and the beauty and the value of the painting.