In 2010, The National Gallery of D.C. announced the acquisition of a rare painting by Giuseppe Arcimboldo. The work titled, “Four Seasons in One Head” was created around 1590. The painting is rare because it is the only undisputed painting by Arcimboldo in a public collection. Arcimboldo’s paintings have been widely copied, and many paintings were lost or disregarded for centuries. Extensive provenance research revealed that “Four Seasons in One Head” was listed in the 1656 inventory of the Cortoni collection in Verona. The painting only recently reappeared in a private collection in Britain. Experts also analyzed the signature “ARCIMBOLDUS F,” located within the image on the panel. The signature was found to be consistent with other signatures by the artist.

Both in depth research and signature analysis helped to confirm the authenticity of “Four Seasons in One Head,” which has finally made its way into public view.

Find out now if you have an authentic Arcimboldo painting or drawing: