The Taking of Christ attributed to Caravaggio is on display in Gorizia.

From April 3 to June 30, 2025, the “Smart Space” exhibition space of the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Gorizia welcomes a much-debated work: The Taking of Christ from the Ruffo Collection, a work that some scholars attribute to Caravaggio as part of a debate that was reignited recently when the work was exhibited again in 2023 for the first time in seventy years, in that case in Ariccia, at the Palazzo Chigi. Before that, the painting had only been exhibited in 1951 at the exhibition on Caravaggio curated by Roberto Longhi. The work, the exhibition organizers point out, will return to a vault after the exhibition, remaining inaccessible to the public until 2027.

The president of the Casa di Risparmio di Gorizia Foundation, Alberto Bergamin, described the exhibition event as “certainly exceptional for the efforts it required, but also for the team that was created, which made it possible to get here.” He also pointed out that “this work was not expected to arrive in Gorizia before the pause that the Superintendency had determined it should spend in a vault for its protection,” making its presence an even more significant opportunity and an “extra responsibility” grasped by Gorizia as European Capital of Culture 2025 together with Nova Gorica. “Our Foundation,” Bergamin concluded, “wanted to give this opportunity to the territory, with free visits, because we deeply believe in the value of culture as an element of community cohesion, this is our mission. I want to thank the owner of the wonderful canvas, Mario Bigetti, for this unique opportunity.”

The Vice President of the Region, Mario Anzil, also expressed great enthusiasm for the initiative, saying that “culture, more than a set of aseptically acquired notions must be a personal and subjective reworking of experiences to be shared with others. Here at the Fondazione Carigo headquarters there is an opportunity for all our citizens to have an extraordinary experience, to live it together, because the awe, the wonder, the emotions that this extraordinary work of art is able to convey will really be part of people’s best memories later on.”

Also taking part in the ceremonial ceremony was Regional Councillor for State Property and Information Services Sebastiano Callari, who highlighted “the extraordinary emotional power of the work on display and its symbolic value as one of the high points of the cultural path that projects GO! 2025 on the international scene. The presence, in the painting, of St. John, bearer of light, whose symbol is the eagle - as it is for Friuli Venezia Giulia - allows us to draw a significant parallel with the cultural promotion action launched as part of the European Capital of Culture.”

The curator of the exhibition, Fr. Gianni Citro, president of the Fondazione Meeting del Mare C.R.E.A., said, “Gorizia 2025 is a great gateway to Europe and the civilization of Europe, the perfect setting for this painting, which is a gateway to a culture and mentality of encounter and friendship among all peoples.”

Alongside the exhibition on the Taking of Christ, a section dedicated to the Codices of the Treasury of Aquileia, precious liturgical books decorated with miniatures, restored thanks to the Carigo Foundation, was inaugurated. Among the rarest pieces, a 9th-century manuscript parchment, one of the oldest book records in Friuli Venezia Giulia, will be on display until May 4.

Visits will begin April 3 and will be free of charge. The exhibit will be open Monday through Thursday from 4 to 7 p.m. and on Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. Online reservations are required to visit “The Taking of Christ” via the link https://bit.ly/lapresadicristocaravaggio, while for the entire exhibition “Gorithia, Between the Folds of Time” reservations can be made at http://bit.ly/4cju1Vq. Visits to the painting will be in groups of up to ten people at a time.

The Taking of Christ attributed to Caravaggio is on display in Gorizia.

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