The San Francisco call., 1910-04-28
MAY BE genuine
Or THE WORK OF
Clever COPYIST
Belief That Work of One of the
Old Masters Has Been
Found Here
Sir Caspar PurdOn Clarke Will
Be Asked to Decide Upon
Value of Painting

Ia an old painting owned by Herman
Boese. 2 san Francisco saloonman,
there is believed TO have been discov-
cred genuine Murillo, painted by that
master in ls45. So convincing were the
proofs OF a cursory examination made
by local experts yesterday that il was
Immediately forwarded TO New York,
there 10 be thoroughly tested by Sir
Caspar Purdon Clarke, director Of the
Metropolitan museum of art and IA
nous English critic If the painting is
genuine it viii be among the most
notable Of recent finds.
MAY BE CLEVER COPY
The indications on the face Of il
point TO it having been painted by
Bartolome Esteban AIurillo for the
Franciscan fathers. However, as doubt
OF genuineness surrounds most old
paintings the value OF the find can not
be stated in definite terms until II has
been examined At length and declared
TO he either a Murillo or A very clever
COPY by an old but unknown painter.
The antiquity of the painting is not
doubted ". X NickerY. president of
the art firm of Vickery. Atkins & Tor
rev. is satisfied as 10 its age, and, after
a brief examination, declared il pos
Sessed the markings Of genuine mas
ter. such also was the opinion OF the
curator Of the park museum Both
however. carefully refrained from Civ
ing a snap judgment
The painting" said Nickery. lis an
old one. I am satisfied. Furthermore il
hears similarity to the work of Murillo
Ia the early part of his life. but | do
not care to say definitely whether II is
, renuin or Just clever copy. The
proofs are so strong. however. that
advised that i'll be forwarded to New
York and judgment passed on it by Sir
,aspar Purdon Clarke. He is recog-
nized as the leading authority on old
masters and his verdict viii stamp it
according to its worth"
Apart from the marks of the painting
itself which 20 10 prove il being gen
uine. there Is 4 parchment past "a on
the back bearing the inscription
Painted by Bartolome Esteban Murillo
in 1855" The parchment. however. was
placed there by recent hands and evi-
IDENTIFY to replace a similar inscription
which had been effaced by time.
KNOWN HISTORY OF PAINTING
As sensational as the discovery is
the known history of the painting, it
having been purchased by Boese at a
sherin-s sale. stolen from him once and
then recovered after the fire of 1906.
The theory as to how il came to be
found or the walls Of a saloon in Cali
.fornia is drawn from the writings OF
Curtis on ~Kalasquez and Murillo." Ac-
cording TO Curtis, Murillo, born in 1917
was selling his paintings as early as
632 In 1915. while in Madrid, he
painted several pictures for the Fran
ciscan fathers. A number OF these were
sent 10 The missions in Mexico and
California. and several others to the
West Indies. The surmise is that this
particular canvas. which originally
hung on the walls of a California mis-
sion. passed from hand TO hand. it's
value unapprecisted. until ultimately it
went with the fixtures" of a bankrupt
saloon stock.
The proofs in the painting itself lie
in the profile of the face. which re-
sembles 10 some extent that of Mu-
riilos Madonna" and also ia the hand
resting on the draperies. which bears
forceful Indications of the brush Of the
great master.
BOUGHT AT SHERIFFrS SALE
It came into the possession of Boese
in 1887. In that year. said the owner
Il bought 4 saloon at - Third street
which was conducted formerly by Null
lsney Brothers 1t was a sherin's sale
and the picture was part OF the fix
lures ] did not realize its value and
never thought about it until a few
days after the sale Patrick Mullaney
one Of the old owners, came to my
saloon and asked me TO let him have
the painting. lie was so insistent and
nervous about it that my suspicious
were aroused and ] refused TO part
witlfit
Later. ] changed the location of the
saloon and removed the picture to my
new place In 1906 it was stolen from
me. I made a search, but without
finding il. The robbery was lucky for
me. for in 1906 along came the fire and
I was burned out. Had the painting
been in my saloon il would have been
destroyed without any doubt, for ] did
not attach any value to it and certain
ly would not have wasted any time try
ing 10 save it."
The picture was returned 10 him in
90S by bar tender who worked under
BIN at the time il was stolen. Since
then he has kept it and it was not until
its possible worth was discovered a few
days ago that he attached any value