The contribution examines a newly discovered masterpiece by Artemisia Gentileschi, Mary Magdalene in Ecstasy, painted at the height of her creative powers in the early 1620s. It contextualises the technical observations and results of analysis, tracing the influence of both Caravaggio and her father, Orazio Gentileschi. An unexpected discovery from the X-radiograph was that Artemisia significantly reduced the amplitude of the white blouse during painting, which was surely an intended toning down of the sensuality of the image.