Leonardo da Vinci is widely considered to be one of the brightest intellects in the history of mankind. Today, there are fewer than 20 pieces of his known work and more than a century has passed since one was rediscovered. However, when two da Vinci admirers spotted an unattributed painting of Jesus Christ at the New Orleans Auction Gallery in 2005 – valued at £1,000 – they were convinced it was worth taking a chance on. Related articles Doomsday date REVEALED: Da Vinci predicted apocalypse on THIS DAY Secret life of Leonardo da Vinci revealed Art dealers Alexander Parrish and Robert Simon purchased the artwork from Susan Hendry Tureau for just under £7,500, on the hunch it could be a da Vinci. Then, guarding their secret for more than two years, the pair teamed up with renowned restorer Dianne Modestini, and later confirmed it was genuine. Ms Dianne Modestini described how working on the piece was a truly unique experience during the BBC’s “Da Vinci: The Lost Treasure” series. She said in 2011: “He [Jesus] really dominates the space and captures your attention with the gaze. Lenardo Da Vinci secret paintign was bought by art dealers (Image: GETTY/AMAZON) The Salvator Mundi shows Jesus Christ (Image: GETTY) But now you know it’s like ‘Oh God, why couldn’t we still have this thing? Susan Hendry Tureau “It has an incredible presence, that no other picture I’ve ever worked on, and I’ve worked on some very important things, has had this effect on me. “If you watch how he emerges at the end of the day when the light goes down, it is the kind of light that Leonardo describes as being ideal for making pictures. “It is certainly very eerie but I’ve spent hundreds of hours staring at it.” Known as the Salvator Mundi – or the saviour of the world – the painting made its public debut in a 2011 da Vinci retrospective at London’s National Gallery and, two years later, the dealers sold it to a Swiss art advisor, Yves Bouvier, for £61million. Mr. Bouvier immediately resold it to his main client, Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev, for £97million. Dianne Modestini restored the picture for Robert Simon (Image: BBC) The Salvator Mundi now looks more like a da Vinci original (Image: BBC) The piece then made history in 2017 when it was sold to Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for $451million (£350million). Ms Hendry Tureau, a 71-year-old retired library technician in Baton Rouge, LA, only learned last year that the painting her father, Basil Clovis Hendry Sr, had owned was a da Vinci original. She said she acquired the painting after she and her siblings were adults and no longer living with him. She said: “We can’t believe it, that such an incredible piece could have been in our family and we didn’t even know it all this time. It just sort of brings me alive.” Da Vinci is famous for his religious paintings (Image: GETTY) Ms Hendry Tureau said her father, who died in June 2004, inherited artworks after the 1987 death of his aunt, Minnie Stanfill Kuntz. However, she doe not think her family knew of the work’s significance because it had been heavily overpainted and didn’t appear to contain the psychological density and detailing that are signatures of da Vinci’s paintings. She also revealed she was stunned to have learned its true value. She added: “It’s just amazing. “But now you know it’s like ‘Oh God, why couldn’t we still have this thing?’”All rights reserved for this news site express.co.uk and under his responsibility