Painting found in attic sold for 1.4 million dollars: Could it belong to Rembrandt?
It has been claimed that a newly discovered painting in the US could belong to the famous Dutch painter Rembrandt. The artwork, which was put up for auction, found a buyer for 1.4 million dollars before its authenticity was confirmed.
12punto
12PUNTO FOREIGN NEWS
A painting found in the attic of a house in the US was sold for 1.4 million dollars at an auction held by Thomaston Auction House. Art historian and Rembrandt expert Gary Schwartz, who claims the work belongs to Rembrandt, reiterated his claim after the auction, arguing that the piece is an original.
Kaja Veilleux, founder of Thomaston Place Auction Galleries, pointed out that the work was created in the style of the Dutch painter Rembrandt and provided information that a document obtained with the painting indicates it was donated to the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 1970. The museum management has not made a statement regarding the newly discovered painting.
The auction house valued the work, which it described as 'in the style of Rembrandt,' between 10 thousand and 15 thousand dollars. Describing the work as being in the style of Rembrandt meant that while it indicated which artistic movement it was associated with, it did not mean it was a work by the painter himself. On the other hand, at the auction held on Saturday, the sale price of the painting rose to 1.4 million dollars after an opening bid of 32 thousand 500 dollars. The price the work reached suggests that those participating in the auction viewed the artwork as a newly discovered original Rembrandt painting.
LIKELY TO BELONG TO REMBRANDT
Rembrandt expert Gary Schwartz said that a potential buyer contacted him to seek his opinion on the painting.
According to Schwartz, there are extremely strong signs that the Dutch painter created the painting.
Noting the striking similarity between another Rembrandt work at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and the newly emerged painting, Schwartz said, 'The similarity is so strong that I am amazed at people who accept one and reject the other.'
Schwartz also claimed that the painting was listed in an auction house's 1969 catalog of Rembrandt's works under the name 'Portrait of a Young Girl.' Conversely, art historian Volker Manuth stated that while he had seen the catalog and the painting Schwartz mentioned, he had doubts about whether the work belonged to Rembrandt.
IF ACCEPTED AS A REMBRANDT, ITS VALUE COULD RISE TO 15 MILLION DOLLARS
Experts state that the number of paintings accepted as belonging to Rembrandt has decreased significantly in the last century, and hundreds of paintings are presented to art lovers with the status of 'in the style of Rembrandt.'
Schwartz stated that if the newly discovered work is accepted as an original, it could be sold for 5 million dollars. Some experts argue that in such a case, the work could be priced at 15 million dollars.