Painting attributed to Rembrandt found tucked away in an attic in Maine

For years, a forgotten 17th-century painting lay stored in an attic in Maine. According to a label on the back of the frame, the piece is titled Portrait of a girl– was the work of Rembrandt, the famous Dutch master. A few weeks ago, the rediscovered artwork sold at auction for $1.41 million.

Kaja Veilleux, an art appraiser and auctioneer, found the piece during a routine visit to a private estate in Cambden, Maine. statement from Thomaston Place Auction Galleries.

“When we visit homes, we often go in blind, not knowing what we will find,” Veilleux, owner of the auction house, tells the Associated press. “The house was full of beautiful pieces, but in the attic, among piles of art, we found this remarkable portrait.”

Veilleux discovered the piece “tucked away” next to a “collection of heirlooms and antiques” at the end of his visit, the statement said. The auction house says the painting is “immaculately preserved for its age.”

Painted on an oak panel and mounted in a hand-carved gold Dutch frame, Portrait of a girl shows a teenager wearing a ruffled white collar and cap. According to the AP, the piece had been in private family ownership since the 1920s. The label states that it has been loaned to the Art Museum of Philadelphia in 1970. No one knows how it ended up in the attic.

“That’s part of the mystery,” says Veilleux New York TimesClaire Moses, adding: “It’s a good thing we found it. Anyone else wouldn’t know what to do with it.”

During the auction on August 24, three telephone bidders “aggressively” pursued the artwork, reports said NBC NewsDavid K. Li. Ultimately, an unnamed European collector landed the piece for $1.41 million.

“Of all the telephone bids I have handled, I never imagined I would help close a deal for more than a million dollars,” Zebulon Casperson, who represented the unnamed winning European bidder, said in the statement. “It feels like a shared victory.”

These types of works of art are rarely discovered in the United States, Veilleux tells Bonnie Bishop WMTW TVa local TV station in Portland, Maine. “They are usually found in Europe because that is where most of them were,” he adds. “But this one found its way to America.”

Portrait of a girl has not yet been authenticated. But if experts can authenticate it, its value will likely be much higher.

“The person who bought the painting for $1.4 million has already gotten a bargain,” says Mark Winter, an authentication expert. Times. “The value of this painting is probably around $15 million.”

Winter’s art authentication company has been hearing for decades from people who think they own a Rembrandt, but are often disappointed. As Winter tells Times“It’s not every day that we discover new paintings by Rembrandt.”