A previously unknown painting by 17th-century Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens has been discovered and authenticated in France, marking a significant find in the art world. The 1613 painting depicting Jesus on the cross was found in September 2024 by French auctioneer Jean-Pierre Osenat in a Paris mansion he was preparing for sale. The artwork is reportedly in excellent condition and represents a major addition to the known works of the Baroque master.

The discovery wasn't immediately recognized as a Rubens work until recently, when experts confirmed Osenat's initial suspicions through sophisticated X-ray imaging and detailed pigment analysis. German art historian Nils Büttner delivered the exciting news to Osenat in what the auctioneer described as a "fateful phone call." "Jean-Pierre, we have a new Rubens!" Büttner announced after a committee of Rubens experts completed their thorough analysis. The painting is scheduled to be offered for sale on November 30, generating significant anticipation among collectors and museums worldwide.

Meanwhile, tensions are reportedly brewing between two of London's most prestigious art institutions following a major policy change. The National Gallery's recent decision to begin collecting art made after its long-held 1900 cutoff date has created friction with its neighbor, the Tate, which specializes in modern art. This expansion has forced both public institutions to abandon an existing agreement that clearly defined which works would go to which collections, effectively ending a rivalry that had been resolved since the contentious 1970s.

Unnamed senior sources within the art community are expressing concern that the National Gallery's new policy will create "bad blood" between the institutions and potentially cause them to "go at each other's throats" in competition for acquisitions. While Tate director Maria Balshaw publicly welcomed the news, reports suggest that behind the scenes, the situation is more complicated. However, some Tate staff members apparently understand the National Gallery's position, with one unnamed senior figure at the Tate acknowledging the practical challenges: "They can't really just stop right at a certain point as we get further away [from 1900], it starts to become more and more arbitrary."

In other museum news, the Getty Villa in Los Angeles has reopened with its first exhibition since the devastating January Palisades fire forced the building to close. The new show, titled "The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece," features the remarkable Pylos Combat Agate, a small carved stone discovered in 2017 that has provided new insights into ancient Greek culture and artistry.

Several other significant developments are shaping the international art scene. The 1908 Singha Durbar Palace in Kathmandu was among the historic landmarks destroyed during recent protests over government corruption and social media restrictions in Nepal. In New York, former Egyptian doctor Ashraf Omar Eldarir has been sentenced to six months in federal prison for smuggling hundreds of looted artifacts from his home country. Eldarir was caught in 2020 at John F. Kennedy International Airport with a suitcase containing 590 ancient artifacts that still carried the scent of wet earth and sand, indicating they had been recently excavated.

The Obama Presidential Center, set to open on Chicago's South Side by 2026, has commissioned ten additional artists to create new works for the facility. The selection process involved both Barack Obama and Michelle Obama in artist discussions, with the chosen creators including Nick Cave, Nekisha Durrett, Jenny Holzer, Jules Julien, Idris Khan, Aliza Nisenbaum, Jack Pierson, Alison Saar, Kiki Smith, and Marie Watt. Additionally, Munich's Walter Storms gallery is expanding with a new 2,150-square-foot Berlin location, opening during the city's current Art Week with an exhibition dedicated to the late German painter and printmaker Günter Fruhtrunk, running until October 31.

In a significant archival acquisition, the New York Public Library has obtained what is believed to be the largest collection of publicly sourced footage documenting the September 11 attacks and their aftermath. The collection originated from an advertisement placed in The Village Voice by filmmakers Steven Rosenbaum and Pamela Yoder shortly after the terrorist attacks, asking "Do you have video footage from the week of 9/11?" and encouraging people to "contribute to history." The resulting archive contains approximately 500 hours of footage that captures the collective mood and public response to the tragedy. Senior curator of manuscripts Julie Golia explained that the archive serves a dual purpose: "It's about 9/11, but it's also a meta-documentation of the debate about its meaning." The mostly unseen collection may become available to the public by 2027 and will eventually be made accessible online.