Van Gogh Painting Worth Millions Once Stashed In Collector’s Attic; Artwork Now Authenticated
Vincent Van Gogh's paintings do not come cheap - in fact, they sell at auctions for millions of dollars - and are therefore kept well-guarded and well taken cared of. But this Van Gogh masterpiece, "Sunset at Montmajour," was deemed as fake or misattributed by a French ambassador, had been stashed in an attic for some time, and had been rejected by the Van Gogh Museum back in the 90s.
Quoting The Independent, "The work had actually been rejected by the Van Gogh Museum two decades ago, an admission the researchers who authenticated it in recent weeks called 'painful'."
When asked in Twitter how the masterpiece came to them, The Van Gogh Museum kindly explained, "At the request of the owner, the museum carried out research into the authenticity of the actual painting. And, supported by the outcome, the researchers concluded that it concerns an authentic painting by Van Gogh."
It took two years of investigation, a process which, according to The Independent, included X-rays, computer analysis, chemical tests, and microscopic research.
Quoting CNN, "(Museum director Axel) Ruger said the museum attributed the painting to van Gogh after 'extensive research into style, technique, paint, canvas, the depiction, van Gogh's letters and the provenance.'"
"Sunset at Montmajour" is painted on a full-size 36.7- by 28.9-inch canvas and, according to the experts, is a depiction of a place near where Van Gogh lived - Montmajour Hill, near Arles in France. They have even pinpointed the date when it was painted - 4 July 1888 - based on the artist's letter to his brother Theo which describes the now-celebrated painting.
Van Gogh art pieces fetch a very high price in the market - among the most expensive artwork ever sold. According to CNN, "Sunflowers" was sold for $39.9 million, "Irises" fetched $53.9 million, and "Portrait of Dr. Gachet" was priced at $82.5 million.
We discovered a new painting by Vincent van Gogh: 'Sunset at Montmajour'. Find out more: https://t.co/t8AjSl4Oj3 pic.twitter.com/Ve0HG585sp
— Van Gogh Museum (@vangoghmuseum) September 9, 2013
Van Gogh's "Sunset at Montmajour" is on loan to the Van Gogh Museum for a year, and will be on display starting Sept. 24.