Caravaggio, Taking of Christ or Kiss of Judas

ODESSA.- Police officers have found the painting Taking of Christ, or the Kiss of Judas which had been stolen from the Museum of Western and Eastern Art in the Black Sea port of Odessa last July, reported "Zérkalo nedeli".

The source also stated that it was informed of the finding of the painting by sources close to the Ministry of the Interior in Ukraine.

Back then, the thieves entered the museum through a window and bypassed the alarm system by removing a window pane instead of breaking it. After taking the work from its frame, the thieves fled through the roof.

The Taking of Christ, or the Kiss of Judas, oil on canvas, measuring 134 X 172.5 centimeters, was painted by the Italian master between 1573 and 1602, even though some sources date it at between 1598 and 1599.

The work of art narrates the arrest of Christ after a night of praying at the foot of the Mount of Olives, representing the figures of Christ and Judas, united by the kiss of betrayal, surrounded by disciples and Roman soldiers.

Caravaggio's application of the chiaroscuro technique shows through on the faces and armour notwithstanding the lack of a visible shaft of light. The figure on the extreme right is a self portrait.