Modigliani fakes, case widens in Palermo: two works on display at Palazzo Bonocore seized

After the reports of collector Carlo Pepi, who had deemed forgeries of the two Modigliani paintings (a Jeanne and a Hannelore) exhibited at the Modigliani exhibition. Les Femmes at Palazzo Bonocore in Palermo (closed last March 31), the affair has undergone developments in the last few hours: the two works have in fact been seized by the Carabinieri of the Nucleo Tutela Patrimonio Culturale, since some investigations, which also made use of the comparison with the opinions of some renowned art experts, would have confirmed that the two portraits are forgeries. In particular, checks were made on the documentation accompanying the two works, and authorities came to the conclusion that these papers lacked scientific authority and had many contradictory aspects. Two people also ended up under investigation for the crime of forgery of works of art.

What’s more, the military seized computer equipment and twenty-seven works of art, probably also forgeries (these were three graphic works given to Modigliani and twenty-four paintings presented as works by Boldini, De Nittis, Chagall, Picasso, Dalí and Guttuso), which were in the possession of one of the suspects. It was estimated that if the two Modigliani forgeries had been put on the market, they could have fetched as much as 9 million euros, while a sum of 5 million euros could have been added with the other seized works.

Modigliani fakes, case widens in Palermo: two works on display at Palazzo Bonocore seized

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