New Delhi: A man from New York City, in northern England, found a painting of “national significance” in his kitchen renovation that was 400 years old. The painting was found in Micklegate’s apartment in New York.
The paintings were discovered in 1998 and photographed before being covered up and largely forgotten.
According to media reports, Luke Budworth, a medical researcher at the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom, and his partner Hazel Mooney, as well as their pet dog, moved into the flat in October 2020. He discovered the paintings measuring approximately 9 feet by 4 feet just below the ceiling while renovating his kitchen last year. Budworth expressed his “excitement” at discovering the paintings and urged that they be preserved for future generations.
While speaking to the media Luke said, “I got my tools out and started chipping away at the board. As soon as I lifted the panel off, there it was, beautiful colours, with some remaining layers of wallpaper from the Victorian era.”
Budworth’s initial investigation revealed that the paintings depicted scenes from Emblems, a book written by poet Francis Quarles in 1635. The paintings, which were painted directly onto plaster, are thought to date from the 17th century. The recently discovered frieze depicts a Biblical scene in which an angel pulls a man into a cage along. There’s also a man in a white cart who “looks like he’s riding to the kingdom of heaven.”
Budworth was given a high-quality, life-size replica of the frieze and was advised to cover it up to preserve it.
