Alessandria, high definition photos instead of real works: the Carabinieri discover the Castello di Camino scam

Alessandria, fifteen paintings by Pier Francesco Guala (1698-1757) and an altarpiece attributed to Aimo Volpi (1491-1528) were recovered, at the conclusion of a detailed investigative activity, by the Carabinieri of the Heritage Protection Unit Cultural Institute of Turin, coordinated by the Public Prosecutor's Office of Vercelli.
The paintings, which portray the major exponents of the Scarampi family, were originally set into the walls - and secured to them with special stucco frames - of the hall of honor of the Camino castle (the first construction dates back to the 11th century).
However, the last owners, before selling the property, stole them and exchanged them with high definition photographs of the same size, so much so as to mislead the unaware visitors of the prestigious noble residence, which has been subject to administrative restrictions since 1937, as it is of interest particularly important historical and artistic.

The Carabinieri, in collaboration with the officials of the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape of the Provinces of Alessandria, Asti and Cuneo, in addition to revealing the replacement of the works, documented the violation of the provisions relating to the legal restriction on the property, since the pictorial works, inseparable from the architectural context, in particular from the room of which they were an integral part and main attraction, could not be detached without authorization.

The original canvases, of considerable historical-artistic and economic value, were found during investigations inside a private home of Milano and seized by decree issued by the Vercelli Judicial Authority.

Even the altarpiece, attributed to Aimo Volpi, was replaced with a painting depicting the Assumption of the Virgin.

The triptych depicts the Crucifixion of Christ: since 1950 it has been inseparable from the building and defined as "property by destination". In 2014 it was subjected to an individual procedure for the recognition of historical-artistic interest, being among the few works to testify to the modernity and richness of artistic choices during the sixteenth century in Monferrato.

The work was removed from the altar of the noble chapel of the castle without the authorization of the Superintendence and sold, in 2017, to a Swiss buyer at the price of 100.000 euros. The timely intervention of the Carabinieri allowed it to be found in a restoration laboratory in Lombardy from where, dismembered, it was about to be transported abroad.

At the disposal of the Court of Vercelli, the fifteen canvases were confiscated and returned to the Superintendency, which will carry out the appropriate protection and valorisation interventions.

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