Vatican works to recover stolen Michelangelo letter

The Vatican is working with authorities to recover a letter, written by the Renaissance artist Michelangelo, that was stolen from a Vatican archive in 1997.

The Rome newspaper il Messaggero reported that a former archive employee asked for a ransom of 100,000 euros ($108,000) to return the rare letter, written entirely in Michelangelo's handwriting and containing his signature.

The ransom demand, made to the cardinal in charge of St Peter's Basilica, was refused, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi told the BBC. He didn't say why the Vatican had not disclosed the theft until now.

Michelangelo also painted the ceiling and altar wall of the Sistine Chapel. He typically dictated letters to assistants, adding only his signature — that makes the letter in question especially rare, Vatican officials said.

The newspaper reported that only one letter was stolen, but Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, said two documents had gone missing, Reuters reported.

Lombardi said the matter had been turned over to the Vatican gendarmerie for further investigation.