AFP: Yale finds Velazquez masterpiece in storage

NEW YORK — A painting in Yale University's vast art collection that had been attributed to an unknown 17th century Spanish painter is in fact a work by Spanish master Diego Velazquez, the school said Friday.

"The Education of the Virgin" was donated in 1925 by two brothers from New Haven, Connecticut, where Yale is located. The family had acquired it some 40 years earlier, said Dorie Baker, a spokeswoman for the school.

The piece was over 300 years old and in poor condition when it was donated, and it languished undisplayed in storage, along with other paintings, sculptures and artifacts in the university's collection.

It came to light as part of a multiyear effort by the school to review its collection, and after six years of study, experts now believe the work is by Velazquez, considered one of the most important painters in the Spanish baroque period.

In a statement, the university said the painting was currently being evaluated for conservation treatment and was not on display.