Six rediscovered paintings that sold for millions

This week's forgotten Picasso joins a long line of works that have resurfaced and attracted a huge buzz

Portrait of Fraulein Lieser by Austrian painter Gustav Klimt sold for $32 million this week. Photo: Wikipedia

A painting, potentially by Pablo Picasso, has been discovered in Italy. Found by a junk dealer named Luigi Lo Rosso in 1962 while he was clearing out the cellar of a home in Capri, the painting was put in a frame and hung in his family home. His son, Andrea Lo Rosso, has always suspected it was an original Picasso.

The portrait is believed to depict Picasso’s mistress and muse, the French photographer and painter Dora Maar. The work also bears a signature on the top left-hand corner. After years of investigation by the family, with a team of experts, the signature has been determined to be genuine.

However, authenticating a Picasso is a complex process which includes both legal and familial dynamics. At present, Lo Rosso and the team plan to present their evidence to the Picasso Foundation. If the painting is authenticated, it could potentially be valued at €6 million ($6.6 million).

This isn’t the first time a work by a master artist has been rediscovered year. In April, a work by Austrian painter Gustav Klimt that was once believed to be lost was sold at auction for $32 million.

Titled Portrait of Fraulein Lieser, the work was painted in 1917 and is believed to be one of Klimt's final works, significantly increasing its cultural and market value.

Plenty of paintings by both old and modern masters have been lost over time due to various reasons. Often after their resurgence in auctions many are sold for undisclosed amounts to private buyers or institutions, making it challenging to understand the full scope, value and stories behind these works of art.

In the 21st century, numerous rediscovered paintings have made headlines due to unusual circumstances that brought them to public attention, their high auction prices, or both.

From a stunning abstract work to a painting by the world’s most famous artist, here are six other rediscovered paintings, alongside Klimt’s portrait, that sold for more than $1 million.

Salvator Mundi by Leonardo da Vinci

Salvator Mundi by Leonardo da Vinci is the most expensive painting ever sold. Getty Images

Perhaps the most well-known and controversial of the works rediscovered and auctioned in contemporary times, Salvator Mundi by Leonardo da Vinci is the most expensive painting ever sold.

The painting was sold to Saudi Arabia's Prince Badr bin Abdullah at a Christie's auction in New York on November 15, 2017, for $450.3 million.

The work dates to around 1499-1510 and depicts Christ as the Saviour of the World, in Renaissance-era robes, holding a crystal sphere in his left hand while his right hand points upwards.

After passing through many hands during the 16th and 17th century, the painting was sold at an auction at the St Charles Gallery auction house in New Orleans to a group of art dealers for $1,175 in 2005. At the time, the work was attributed to Leonardo’s pupil Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio.

By the time it was sold in 2005, the painting had been damaged and overpainted over many years. However, once the restoration process began, which included removing the overpainting and using infrared photography, and through the consultation of several experts, the work was eventually attributed and sold as a work by Leonardo. However, since the painting was last sold at auction it has been the subject of controversy and debate, with many art historians and critics still questioning its attribution to Leonardo.

Portrait of a Girl by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn

Portrait of a Girl by Rembrandt was discovered and sold for $1.4 million. Photo: Thomaston Place Auction Galleries

The Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman Rembrandt was renowned for his mastery over light and shadow and his realistic portraits. He was also a prolific artist, which means several of his works have been lost and rediscovered over time, with three included in this list. The most recent rediscovered Rembrandt was found and sold last month in the US.

When art appraiser, auctioneer and gallerist Kaja Veilleux was attending a house call at a private estate in Maine, she discovered a 17th-century portrait by the artist in the attic.

The work, Portrait of a Girl, depicts a teenager wearing a ruffled white collar and a cap and is painted on an oak panel and mounted in a hand-carved gold Dutch frame. The portrait features key characteristics of Rembrandt’s style, such as his use of realistic yet dramatic lighting, and an emotional depth to his sitter’s expression.

The painting has been in private family ownership since the 1920s and a label behind the painting indicates that it had been loaned to the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 1970. However, no one is sure how the work made it to the attic.

Veilleux added the portrait to Thomaston Place Auction Galleries' annual summer sale and was sold to a private bidder in Europe for $1.4 million.

Two Portraits by Rembrandt

The two rediscovered portraits by Rembrandt are the smallest he painted. EPA

Two small portraits by Rembrandt were also recently discovered and subsequently sold for $14 million at Christie's in London in July last year.

Painted in 1635, the 20-centimetre-tall oval portraits depict an elderly plumber named Jan Willemsz van der Pluym and his wife, Jaapgen Carels. The portraits, the smallest Rembrandt painted, illustrate his understanding of light, facial proportions and expression.

The owners of the portraits were the descendants of an unnamed individual who bought them at auction at Christie's in 1824, where they were listed as Rembrandts.

After their discovery, forensic work was undertaken to verify their authenticity. This included scientific analysis by art experts from Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum.

The Adoration of the Kings by Rembrandt

Rembrandt's The Adoration of theKings illustrates a biblical scene where three wise men present gifts to the newborn Jesus. Photo: Sotheby's

Painted in 1628, The Adoration of the Kings is a small work that depicts a biblical scene where three wise men present gifts to the newborn Jesus.

The painting disappeared in the 1950s and resurfaced at a Christie’s sale in Amsterdam in 2021, it was believed to be a work by one of Rembrandt’s contemporaries. Estimated to be valued between $10,500 and $15,800, it was then sold for nearly $1 million as there were already suspicions that the painting may have been by Rembrandt himself.

After its sale and examination, which included infrared and X-ray imaging as well as an inspection by leading Rembrandt scholars, Sotheby’s auction house announced the work to be a real Rembrandt.

The painting was then sold at a Sotheby's auction in London on December 6, 2023, for $13.8 million.

Tres Personajes by Rufino Tamayo

Mexican artist Rufino Tamayo's Tres Personajes (Three Persons) which found among rubbish bags in New York City. AFP

Mexican modernist artist Rufino Tamayo painted this brightly coloured abstract work in 1970.

Entitled Tres Personajes (Three Persons), the work is considered to be a significant example of Tamayo's unique and mature style. The artist used a technique where the rough surface texture of the painting was made up of sand and ground marble dust mixed into the paint.

In 1977, the painting was bought by a man from Houston, Texas, as a gift for his wife. But during a house move in 1987, the painting was stolen.

It wasn’t until 2003, in New York, that a woman named Elizabeth Gibson found the painting in the rubbish in the street. Gibson sensed that the painting was of some importance and spent four years attempting to learn about the work.

She eventually discovered the identity of the artist through an episode of The Antique Roadshow and then contacted the former owner.

Upon receiving her stolen artwork, the original owner sold the painting to Sotheby's for $1.04 million in November 2007. Gibson received a $15,000 reward for returning the painting as well as a portion of the auction sale price.

Portrait of Fraulein Lieser by Gustav Klimt

Known for his powerful, evocative portraits, Austrian painter Gustav Klimt used symbolism, Art Nouveau and gold leaf in his work.

As an incredibly influential and popular artist, it’s no surprise that a rediscovered painting by Klimt was recently sold for more than $30 million. Portrait of Fraulein Lieser, long believed to have been lost, is a distinct work by the artist characterised by its sparse composition, vibrant colours and intricate gold-leaf detailing.

Painted in 1917, it is considered to be one of Klimt's last works. Several of his works were confiscated during the Nazi era and the whereabouts of this particular painting between 1925 and the 1960s are still unclear.

The identity of the woman is also a mystery. Experts aren’t sure if she is the daughter of Adolf and Henriette Lieser, clients of Klimt, or one of the daughters of Adolf’s brother, Justus Lieser.

The painting was previously owned by Austrian private citizens who are believed to be the legal successors of Adolf and Henriette Lieser and came to the painting through three successive inheritances.

The reasons for the sale were also not explicitly shared but Portrait of Fraulein Lieser sold for $32 million at the im Kinsky auction house in Vienna on April 24, 2024.