'Oil Painting' in a Shed Stained with Bird Droppings... A 3.7 Billion Won Artwork

Former Owner Passed Away, Purchased 20 Years Ago for 750,000 Won
Van Dijk Artwork... To Be Auctioned at New York Sotheby's Next Week

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] An oil painting found covered in bird droppings in a barn in the United States has been revealed to be a work by the 17th-century painter Van Dyck. This piece is scheduled to be auctioned at Sotheby's New York next week.

According to the British daily The Times on the 20th (local time), the late Albert Roberts, a civil servant and collector, purchased the painting in 2002 for $600 (about 750,000 KRW), believing it to be a vintage Dutch work. At the time of discovery, the painting was left neglected in a barn in Kinderhook, a small village established by Dutch immigrants in New York State in the late 17th century, covered in bird droppings.

Van Dyck's 'Study for Saint Hieronymus' going up for auction at Sotheby's in New York on the 26th. There are bird droppings stains on the back.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Roberts hung the painting in his home for a long time, and later, as he began to trace the origin of the work more seriously, he came to believe it might be a study for "Saint Hieronymus and the Angel," painted by the 17th-century Flemish artist Anthony van Dyck (1599?1641) between 1618 and 1620.

Art historian Susan Barnes, an expert on Van Dyck, appraised the painting and stated that it is a rare surviving life study by Van Dyck. Roberts passed away in 2021, and the painting will be auctioned as part of his estate at Sotheby's New York on the 26th. The auction house estimates the painting's hammer price to be between $2 million and $3 million (approximately 2.5 to 3.7 billion KRW).

The painting depicts the nude torso of an elderly man with a white beard extending down to his chest, measuring 58.5 cm in width and 95 cm in height. The work is titled "Study for Saint Hieronymus." Saint Hieronymus (347?September 30, 420), also known as Saint Jerome, is one of the four great Church Fathers of Christianity. Known as the translator of the Latin Vulgate Bible, he is often depicted in artworks reading or writing books.

The 'Saint Hieronymus' by Van Dyck, housed in the Rotterdam Museum in the Netherlands. The artwork up for auction this time is presumed to be a study for this piece.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Christopher Appasle, head of Old Master Paintings at Sotheby's, believes that Van Dyck likely painted this study during his late teens while working in the studio of Peter Paul Rubens (1577?1640) in Antwerp, Flanders, Belgium. Rubens was regarded as the foremost Baroque painter of Flanders.

Van Dyck, known as a prodigy from a young age, had already attained master status by the age of 19 and subsequently assisted Rubens, who was 22 years his senior. Appasle said, "Van Dyck emerged as a master almost from the start. While painters like Rubens had to strive tirelessly to reach the status of a great master, Van Dyck was born a genius, like Mozart."

It is unknown how this painting traveled from Europe to the United States, but such discoveries of masterpieces in unexpected places are not uncommon.

In 2014, "Judith and Holofernes" (1607) by the Italian master Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio was discovered in an attic in Toulouse, southern France. This work, which was auctioned in 2019 with an estimated price of $170 million (about 210 billion KRW), found a new owner at an undisclosed price.

Also, in 2016, at an estate sale in Concord, Massachusetts, a man purchased an old sketch for $30 (about 37,000 KRW), which was later confirmed to be an authentic work by the 16th-century German painter Albrecht D?rer. The estimated value of this piece is about $50 million (approximately 6.15 billion KRW).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.