The £500 Constable now on sale for £2m
THE previous owner of this oil painting had no idea it was by John Constable. Unfortunately, neither did Christie’s, which valued it at £500 to £800.
Sold 18 months ago for £3,500, it has now been classed as a Constable original – and is back on the market for £2million. The massive difference in price means Christie’s could be sued by Lady Hambleden, 83, the owner who unknowingly sold it for a fraction of its current valuation.
Christie’s thought it was painted by an admirer of Constable as an homage to the painter’s 1831 piece Salisbury Cathedral From The Meadows, which was sold last year for £23.1million.
An anonymous collector bought Lady Hambleden’s picture for £3,500 in 2013. After restoration work was carried out, it was confirmed by scholars to be an original work by the artist – specifically, one of several preparatory paintings he did before creating his Salisbury Cathedral masterpiece.
The 18in-by-24in painting had been in a collection amassed in the 19th century by William Henry Smith, founder of WHSmith. Lady Hambleden is one of his descendants.
The painting is now back on sale, this time with Sotheby’s, who put its value at £2million. The auction will take place on January 29 in New York.
The catalogue note has been written by Anne Lyles, an authority on the artist. She called it an ‘exciting and important additions to the master’s oeuvre to have emerged in recent decades’.
A spokesman for Christie’s said: ‘We took the view at the time of our sale in 2013 that it was by a “follower of”. We understand that there is no clear consensus of expertise on the new attribution.’