An extraordinary exhibition at the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan has brought together eight surviving panels of the Augustinian Altarpiece by Piero della Francesca after over 450 years. This remarkable reunion solves a long-standing mystery surrounding the polyptych, which originally consisted of 30 pieces. Previous attempts by museums to assemble the panels had been unsuccessful, with various pieces scattered across Europe and the United States.
The current exhibition features four large flanking panels of saints against a blue background, with a missing central panel that has been lost for centuries. Recent scientific studies have shed light on the missing piece, suggesting that it depicted the coronation of the Virgin rather than the previously believed Virgin and Child enthroned.
