An angel in a church in central Rome has been restored to resemble Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a national newspaper reports.
The accusation has led to an investigation by the Ministry of Culture.
Mrs. Meloni, meanwhile, laughs the affair off.
La Repubblica daily first highlighted the change on the front page, saying that one of two angels in a chapel of St. Lawrence’s Basilica in Lucina now bore the likeness of the 49-year-old conservative, Italy’s first female prime minister.
The article included before-and-after images, noting that the angel had previously appeared as a “general cherub.”
The culture ministry said it had ordered Rome’s top art heritage official to carry out an immediate inspection of the restored painting before taking any further steps.
The opposition Five Star Movement party complained: “We cannot allow art and culture to risk becoming a tool for propaganda or something else, regardless of whether the face depicted is that of the Prime Minister.”
The parish priest, Daniele Micheletti, told the ANSA news agency that the decorations in the chapel had recently been updated after water damage.
The originals only dated from 2000 and were therefore not subject to any heritage protection.
The restoration was carried out by the same artist who created the original painting, Bruno Valentinetti.
He disputed suggestions that he had changed the statue, telling reporters: “I have restored what was there before… 25 years ago.”
As for Ms. Meloni, she posted a photo of the disputed painting on Instagram, captioning it, “No, I definitely don’t look like an angel,” with a laughing emoji.
Ms Meloni, who has led Italy’s most right-wing government since World War II, is Roman Catholic and has publicly aligned herself with traditional Christian values.
She often uses the motto “Dio, patria, famiglia” (God, country, family).
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