Vatican: The Story of Monsignor Michele Basso

Monsignor Michele Basso, a canon of Saint Peter’s who died of a cardiac arrest in January, was the victim of media slander because he owned many works of art that he had collected throughout his life.

Basso gave them to the Vatican Museum which showed little interest, so Basso took them back.

He then decided to donate his works to the Fabbrica di San Pietro where he had worked.

Cardinal Comastri who was the archpriest, asked the Secretariat of State what to do. The answer was, “Don’t accept the gift but keep the works with you.”

When Cardinal Gambetti took over from Comastri, Basso told him that his gift had again been refused and asked for it to be returned. After that, Gambetti never spoke to Basso again.

But when Basso died, Gambetti quickly went to his apartment where he found Basso's executor and universal heir. Gambetti asked him for the keys to the apartment although it was not in his responsibility.

The executor gave him the keys, but went to the gendarmerie and warned them that, if anything went missing, Gambetti would be responsible. So, the gendarmerie sealed Basso's apartment.

But that wasn’t the end of it. Alessandro Diddì, the Vatican’s prosecutor, intervened on Gambetti's behalf, broke the seals, and had the locks of the apartment changed.

SilereNonPossum.it (February 9) calls this “Mauro Gambetti and his eagerness to put his hands on everything.”

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