About this discovery, which experts call a sensation, was reported by Olam.uz online portal linked to the Pravda Vostoka Newspaper. As it turned out, for many years, under the picture of the Russian painter Mikhail Sokolov (1885-1947) "Fog on a river", housed in the Savitskiy Museum in Nukus, was the second picture, depicting portrait of an unknown man.
It was found by A. Shpade – an employee of the Restoration department of the museum Savitsky and by Geraldine Frey – a restorer from France, while they took an x-ray of the picture. The Picture "Fog on a river" is one of the landscape works of Sokolov, which depicts a steamer sailing on a river and, barely visible through thick fog, buildings on the waterfront. Under the primer paint there is a portrait of an unknown man, who, judging by the garment was a high-ranking representative of catholic clergy.
The experts were divided in their opinions. Some believe that M. Sokolov painted his work "Fog on a river" on a finished picture of another artist, primed it with a layer of paint. Others think that he painted it himself earlier, but for some reasons decided to use the canvas as a basis for a new picture. Although, the artistic fulfillment and theme of the found portrait differ from all other known works of Sokolov.
However, beyond a doubt, there is a high cultural value of the portrait, so the staff of the museum can not decide which of these two works to preserve. Most likely, this question will be solved by competent experts in a field of fine arts. Meanwhile, the picture remains in its original form, and none of the visitors of the museum can even guess about its "double effect".
