Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti (a.k.a. Michelangelo) was responsible for some of the greatest masterpieces in history. His works – David, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and the Pietà to name just a few – exerted an unparalleled influence on art, but with an earlier piece Michelangelo started his career in, shall we say, a less than honest way.
At the age of 20 in 1496, Michelangelo sculpted a marble statue of a sleeping Cupid and tried to pass it off as an antique by burying the statue in acidic earth, which made it look older than it actually was. He wanted to give the impression that it was a found art object to get a higher price for the work.
The statue sold to a dealer who in turn sold it to Cardinal Riario of San Giorgio. When the Cardinal discovered it was a fraud, he demanded his money back from the dealer. The Cardinal, however, saw that Michelangelo had great talent and the young sculptor got to keep his profits from the sale.
This made Michelangelo an instant celebrity and his art career took off. It is even said that the same Cardinal was so taken with Michelangelo's talents that he invited the artist to work in Rome for a year.
The statue was destroyed in a fire in 1698.
So when you think about it, you could say that a forgery paved the way for the creation of some of the greatest paintings, sculptures and works of architecture in the history of mankind.
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