Logic problem: guess the author of the painting

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Take a look at the opinions of the curators and determine which of them was right.

A portrait of the alleged work of Jan Lievens was brought to the exhibition at the Rijksmuseum. But the three curators argued about the authorship of the picture, expressing the following opinions.

1. This is not Leavens or even Vermeer.
2. This is not Leavens, this is Netsher.
3. This is clearly not Netsher, this is Leavens.

As the examination showed, one of the curators gave an accurate answer, the other was completely wrong, and the third was only half right. Who is the author of the portrait?

Both conclusions of the first curator cannot be false, because then Leavens and Vermeer will be the author of the picture at the same time. This means that this curator could tell the whole truth or only half.

The opinions of the second and third curators are directly opposite. Therefore, according to the condition of the problem, one of them gave an exact answer, and the second was completely mistaken. Consequently, the first curator was only half right.

Let's say that both statements of the second curator are correct: the portrait was painted not by Lievens, but by Netscher. Let us compare them with the conclusions of the first, who, as we found out, is half right. It turns out that he guessed that the author was not Leavens, and was mistaken in denying the authorship of Vermeer. It follows that the author is Vermeer, and this contradicts the assumption.

Thus, the second curator was completely wrong. Then the third gave the exact answer - the author of the painting Leavens.

Show answer Hide answer