In Italy, church and state investigate the appearance of a cherub seemingly modeled on Meloni

ROME (AP) — There is a long tradition of painters depicting real people in their religious art, but the appearance in a Roman church of a cherub that bears a striking resemblance to Premier Giorgia Meloni has sparked a minor scandal for both church and state in Italy.

The diocese of Rome and the Italian Culture Ministry both launched investigations into the recent renovations at the Basilica of San Lorenzo in Lucina, after photographs of the Meloni-esque cherub were published in Italian newspapers this weekend. Their swift and harsh reactions indicated little tolerance for the profane in a sacred place.

The ruckus has given the basilica, already well known as one of the oldest churches in Rome, newfound celebrity status. It was jammed on Sunday and Monday with curiosity-seekers straining to photograph the angel in a side chapel up near the front altar, at times disrupting Mass.

Meloni, for her part, tried to tamp down the outcry and make light of it.

“No, I definitely don’t look like an angel,” Meloni wrote on social media with a laughing/crying emoji alongside a photo of the work.

The basilica is located on one of Rome’s fanciest piazzas just down the block from the Spanish Steps. It was consecrated in 440 by Pope Sixtus III and subsequently enlarged and rebuilt. It is now the property of the Interior Ministry, which is responsible for its upkeep.

In 2000, one of the front chapels was renovated to include a bust of the last king of Italy, Umberto II. Included in the decoration was a cherub holding a map of Italy, seemingly kneeling down before the king.

That figure is now under scrutiny since the cherub’s face, after a recent restoration, appears modeled on Meloni's. It is problematic because the cherub appears in a position of deference to the king. Italians rejected the monarchy after World War II because of its support for Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini; Meloni's right-wing party has its roots in the neo-fascist party that succeeded Mussolini.

The cherub was restored after water infiltrations damaged the basilica starting in 2023. The parish priest, the Rev. Daniele Micheletti, acknowledged the resemblance to Meloni but dismissed the significance, noting that plenty of artists depicted real life people in their works.

Caravaggio is said to have modeled the Virgin Mary on a prostitute in one of his works; Michelangelo painted himself as St. Bartholomew in the Sistine Chapel’s “The Last Judgement.”

“The priest is not responsible for the decorations in the sense that the owner is someone else,” Micheletti told The Associated Press on Monday in his office, as his phone rang constantly. “So, what do they want from me? I did not do the painting.”

Over the weekend, the Culture Ministry sent a special delegate, Daniela Porro, and ministry officials to the basilica to survey the angel. Their aim, according to a ministry statement, was to “ascertain the nature of the work” and “decide what to do.”

The restorer, for his part, has denied wrongdoing and denied he used Meloni as a model. In interviews with Italian media, Bruno Valentinetti said Meloni was in the eye of the beholder and that he merely restored the original painting, which he himself had made in 2000.

The investigations are looking to determine what the original 2000 cherub looked like.

The vicar of Rome, Cardinal Baldassare Reina, was far less forgiving. He announced an investigation and criticized Micheletti’s blasé attitude in insisting that a political figure had no place in church art.

“In renewing the diocese of Rome’s commitment to the preservation of its artistic and spiritual heritage, it is firmly reiterated that images of sacred art and Christian tradition cannot be misused or exploited, as they are intended exclusively to support liturgical life and personal and communal prayer,” the diocese said a statement.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

A man takes a picture at a restored fresco to the memory of late Italy's King Umberto II depicting Angels inside the Basilica of St. Lawrence in Lucina in Rome, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

People take pictures at a restored fresco to the memory of late Italy's King Umberto II depicting Angels inside the Basilica of St. Lawrence in Lucina in Rome, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

A restored chapel with Angels depicted on a fresco to the memory of late Italy's King Umberto II is seen inside the Basilica of St. Lawrence in Lucina in Rome, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

A detail of a restored chapel with Angels depicted on a fresco to the memory of late Italy's King Umberto II inside the Basilica of St. Lawrence in Lucina in Rome, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

The disappearance of the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie over the weekend is being investigated as a crime based on what authorities saw at her home, an Arizona sheriff said Monday.

Asked to explain why investigators believe the Tucson-area home is a crime scene, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said Nancy Guthrie has limited mobility and said there were other things indicating she did not leave on her own, but he declined to further elaborate.

“I need this community to step up and start giving us some calls,” Nanos said during a news conference.

The sheriff said Guthrie, who lived alone, was of sound mind.

“This is not dementia related. She’s as sharp as a tack. The family wants everyone to know that this isn’t someone who just wandered off,” Nanos said, adding that she needs her daily medication.

Guthrie was last seen around 9:30 p.m. Saturday at her home in the Tucson area and her family reported her missing around noon Sunday, the sheriff said.

Nanos said a family member received a call from someone at church saying Guthrie wasn’t there, leading family to search for her at her home and then calling 911.

Searchers were using drones and search dogs to look for her, Nanos said. Search and rescue teams were supported by volunteers and Border Patrol and the homicide team was also involved, he said. It is not standard for the homicide team to get involved in such cases, Nanos said.

“This one stood out because of what was described to us at the scene and what we located just looking at the scene,” Nanos said Sunday. He was not ruling out foul play.

On Monday morning, Nanos said search crews worked hard but have since been pulled back.

“We don’t see this as a search mission so much as it is a crime scene,” the sheriff said.

Even so, a sheriff’s helicopter flew over the desert Monday afternoon near Guthrie’s home in the affluent Catalina Foothills area on the northern edge of Tucson. Her brick home has a gravel driveway and a yard covered in Prickly Pear and Saguaro cactus. Savannah Guthrie issued a statement on Monday, NBC's “Today” show reported.

“On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support,” she said. “Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear Nancy."

“Today” opened Monday’s show with the disappearance of the co-anchor’s mother, but Savannah Guthrie was not at the anchor’s desk. Nanos said during the Monday news conference that Savannah Guthrie is in Arizona. Savannah Guthrie grew up in Tucson, graduated from the University of Arizona and previously worked as a reporter and anchor at KVOA-TV in Tucson.

Nancy Guthrie appeared in a November 2025 story her daughter did about her hometown. Over a meal, Savannah Guthrie asked her mother what made the family want to plant roots in Tucson in the 1970s.

“It’s so wonderful. Just the air, the quality of life,” Nancy Guthrie said. “It’s laid back and gentle.”

She said she likes to see the javelinas, pig-like desert mammals, eat her plants.

This image provided by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department, on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026, shows a missing person alert for Nancy Guthrie. (Pima County Sheriff’s Department via AP)

FILE - Savannah Guthrie attends the third annual World Mental Health Day Gala, hosted by Project Healthy Minds, at Spring Studios on Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, file)