Titian masterpiece saved

Titian masterpiece saved NEWS

Share this

Titian's Diana and Callisto has been saved following a £45m deal agreed with owner the Duke of Sutherland.

Bought with the help of £25m from the National Gallery, this 'supremely important' oil painting was saved for the nation.

Along with partners National Galleries of Scotland, they were also able to save Diana and Actaeon in 2009.

Titian's Diana and Actaeon was purchased in 2009 for £50m, the institutions had originally been allowed until the end of the year to raise money for Diana and Callisto.

The two oil paintings will be displayed together rotating between London and Edinburgh.

National Gallery director Dr Nicholas Penny said: 'For more than 100 years, these two great paintings by Titian have been regarded as pre-eminent among the masterpieces in private hands in the UK.

'We have been able to secure both of them for the public, in a period of economic hardship, because of the esteem and affection that both institutions have enjoyed for many decades.'

BBC's arts editor Will Gompertz said, ''For the UK's national galleries to have seen Diana and Callisto leave the country would be like Italy waving goodbye to Michelangelo's David.'

Created in the 1500s by Titian in the Renaissance period, the companion pieces are regarded as some of his greatest works.

Inspired by the Roman poet Ovid, the pieces are among six works painted for Philip II of Spain.

The two Titian paintings formed part of the Duke of Sutherland's Bridgewater Collection featuring work by Raphael, Rembrandt and Poussin.

The works were offered to the galleries at significantly lower prices than their market value and it is estimated they were bought for less than a third of what they would be worth on the open market.

The total amount came from the National Gallery (£25m), donations and grants from individual donors and trusts (£15m), Heritage Lottery Fund (£3m), Art Fund (£2m) with a £5m reduction in asking price by the Duke.

'From today these great paintings belong to the British public and we could not be more thrilled that they will be available for the enjoyment, the education, and the inspiration for generations to come,' said John Leighton, director-general of the National Galleries of Scotland.

Diana and Callisto will be displayed in London for an 18 month period from Thursday, it will be joined by Diana and Actaeon in July.