Home Appraiser Spotted a 500 yr old Brueghel Painting in a Family's TV Room. Just Sold For $845,000

[progressoid]

A Home Appraiser Spotted a 500-Year-Old Brueghel Painting in a Family’s T.V. Room. They Just Sold It for $845,000


For generations, the family that owned the artwork believed it was a cheap knockoff.



Earlier this year, a family in northern France called on auctioneer Malo de Lussac to appraise the value of their home. But when the expert arrived, he spotted something potentially even more valuable: a 500-year-old painting by the Flemish artist Pieter Brueghel the Younger.

“I arrived in a small television room which was not very well lit. I started making my estimates in the living room and turning around behind the door, there were two-thirds of the painting visible,” de Lussac, who works for Paris’s Daguerre Val de Loire auction house, told the Associated Press. “And that’s when in fact I discovered the painting. It was a bit of a surprise.”

The artwork, believed to have been painted between 1615 and 1617, highlighted Daguerre Val de Loire’s auction of drawings, paintings, and autographs in Paris this week. It carried a pre-sale estimate of €600,000 to €800,000 ($650,000 to $866,000).

more...https://news.artnet.com/market/appraiser-breughel-tv-room-original-2277383

[elleng]

1. WOW!

and sounds 'low,' to me, but maybe not. More interesting, 'we,' my folks, had a very small Brueghel, obtained from Dad's friend a NYC framer and restorer

Pieter Brueghel the Younger was a Flemish painter known for numerous copies after his father Pieter Bruegel the Elder's work, as well as his original compositions. The large output of his studio, which produced for the local and export market, contributed to the international spread of his father's imagery. Wikipedia

Pieter Bruegel the Elder was the first of a prolific dynasty of Flemish painters. With his vivid portrayals of peasants, minutely detailed landscapes, and scenes filled with fantastic monsters, Bruegel was a unique artist, and is today considered a master of the Flemish Renaissance and a pioneer of genre painting.

[progressoid]

3. Cool!

Have you had yours appraised?

I was kind of surprised that the price for this was that "low" also. I guess that's the market for 500 yr old Flemish paintings today?

[elleng]

5. The Bruegel and most of our/Dad's collection was returned to restorer/framer,

when folks moved, so I don't know of appraisal.

I do have one, ballerina by a lithuanian/slavic/eastern european artist. I forget his name, but it's hanging in my living/tv room.

[Lunabell]

2. Oh, how nice for them!

What a story to tell at family gatherings. Not to mention a nice little chunk of change! Best wishes to the family and I love a heart warming positive story, especially recently. Thank you, progressoid for sharing!

[bif]

4. I'm actually surprised it wasn't worth more.

I thought it would fetch at least a million dollars.