From an article about the painting, it seems that the alabaster jar and faint halo over her head are references to Mary Magdelene? If the 19th century repaint was to make it a pretty picture for sellability then I could see why they wouldn’t want such a heavy subject matter.
![Isabella de’ Medici [1574 & ~1700s] (Before and After Removal of Victorian Era beautification)](https://quokk.au/pictrs/image/9dd7f586-9557-4914-8d5a-4092ef55e338.jpeg){kind=link}
From an article about the painting, it seems that the alabaster jar and faint halo over her head are references to Mary Magdelene? If the 19th century repaint was to make it a pretty picture for sellability then I could see why they wouldn’t want such a heavy subject matter.