Rembrandt’s gent returns with riches

TWO YEARS ago, Dutch art dealer Jan Six was attending a Christie’s art auction in London when he noticed an old painting by an unknown artist that he felt had traces of Rembrandt in it. He had to own it.

The 39-year-old secured funds just in time to make the final bid for Portrait of a Young Gentleman, estimated to have been painted in the 1600s, for $185 000 (about

R2.48 million). If it was not a Rembrandt, Six had wasted money.

But it was more than a hunch.

Six had grown up in a house filled with classic Dutch artwork, including a Rembrandt portrait of one of his ancestors. Six was convinced he had bought a Rembrandt, but he faced the challenge of authentication.

It took 18 months using X-ray techniques and countless analyses of paint samples before he won the backing of Rembrandt experts.

Until now, the existence of the painting had been unknown because there was no literary reference to it. The new Rembrandt is believed to have been painted when the artist was about 28. Experts believe it is part of a larger painting which had probably also depicted the young man’s wife.

Keeping true to his profession as art dealer, Six is going to sell his discovery but is reluctant to estimate how much it might be worth. It could end up on auction again, and again break records. In 2009, for example, Christie’s sold Rembrandt’s Portrait of a Man, Half-length, with Arms Akimbo, to an anonymous buyer. The hammer fell on a record $27m (about R363m at current exchange rates).

Six might be able to give up his day job. – Auctions Writer

‘Portrait of a Young Gentleman’ was recognised as a Rembrandt by an astute Dutch art dealer.