The Lost Painting - Jonathan Harr

Written by Jonathan Harr
Read by Campbell Scott
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
Release date: October 25, 2005
Duration: 06:22:21

The Lost Painting is a remarkable synthesis of history and detective story.

An Italian village on a hilltop near the Adriatic coast, a decaying palazzo facing the sea, and in the basement, cobwebbed and dusty, lit by a single bulb was an archive unknown to scholars. Here, a young graduate student from Rome, Francesca Cappelletti, makes a discovery that inspires a search for a work of art of incalculable value, a painting lost for almost two centuries.

The artist was Caravaggio, a master of the Italian Baroque. He was a genius, a revolutionary painter, and a man beset by personal demons. Four hundred years ago, he drank and brawled in the taverns and streets of Rome, moving from one rooming house to another, constantly in and out of jail, all the while painting works of transcendent emotional and visual power. He rose from obscurity to fame and wealth, but success didn’t alter his violent temperament. His rage finally led him to commit murder, forcing him to flee Rome a hunted man. He died young, alone, and under strange circumstances.

Caravaggio scholars estimate that between sixty and eighty of his works are in existence today. Many others–no one knows the precise number–have been lost to time. Somewhere, surely, a masterpiece lies forgotten in a storeroom, or in a small parish church, or hanging above a fireplace, mistaken for a mere copy.

Prizewinning author Jonathan Harr embarks on an spellbinding journey to discover the long-lost painting known as The Taking of Christ–its mysterious fate and the circumstances of its disappearance have captivated Caravaggio devotees for years.

In Harr’s THE LOST PAINTING, the main character is neither male nor female, but is a 400-year-old painting known as THE TAKING OF CHRIST. The story follows multiple quests to uncover its history and to discover the original painting. Campbell Scott pulls the listener into the search by bringing Harr’s vivid details to life. His descriptions of Italian life in the 1600s and the adventures of the characters are easily portrayed by Scott. As listeners partake of the story, they venture down multiple paths in the long life of the painting. With Scott’s delivery, it’s easy to understand how some listeners will get hooked on this heroic journey. R.B.T. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2006