Author Talk: Belinda Rathbone

Belinda Rathbone talks about her recent book The Boston Raphael: A Mysterious Painting, An Embattled Museum in an Era of Change, and A Daughter’s Search for the Truth.  The biographer and historian tackles a subject close to her—the true story behind Boston Museum of Fine Arts director Perry T. Rathbone’s career-changing decision to bring a forgotten Renaissance painting to the Museum—the Boston Raphael.  An Italian sleuth with his own agenda challenged the Museum’s right to do so, the painting’s authenticity was debated by international experts, and power struggles at the Museum reflected its own particular trials as institutions in the art world faced transformative change.  Join us for the full story, revealed in detail by the director’s daughter.