Caravaggio's lost original 'discovered'

Caravaggio's original Mary Magdalene in Ecstasy has been discovered in a private European collection, the world's leading expert on the Renaissance master has claimed, according to The Telegraph.

The 1606 painting has been copied at least eight times, but Mina Gregori, a Caravaggio scholar, says the original has finally been found.

"Its magnificent. I knew it right away as soon as I saw it," Gregori told The Telegraph at her home in Florence. "I had an immediate, instinctive reaction."

The painting refers to the legend in which Mary Magdalene, living as a hermit in a cave in southern France near Aix-en-Provence after Christ's death, was overcome seven times a day by "the delightful harmonies of the celestial choirs".

Gregori, who is considered the world's foremost expert on the artist, would not reveal the country where the painting is located, saying the owners do not want publicity, but confirmed that when she first saw the 100 by 90cm oil on canvas in their private home, she had no doubt.