An ultra-rare portrait from the famed Italian painter Sandro Botticelli could fetch $80 million or even more when it comes up for sale at Sotheby’s on Thursday, by You.
The auction signifies the first big test of the art market this year, as well as the willingness of global collectors to pay 8 or perhaps 9 figures for trophy works during the health crisis as well as market volatility. When it does nicely, it may help enhance the reputation and prices for Old Master paintings during a moment when virtually all of a lot of money in the art world is actually chasing newer, flashier is effective coming from contemporary and post-war artists.
“There is an interested worldwide audience as well as interest in this particular painting,” said Charles Stewart, CEO of Sotheby’s.
The Botticelli painting, referred to as “Young Man Holding a Roundel,” is considered to experience been painted approximately 1480. It is one of more or less a dozen portraits linked to Botticelli and one of only a few in private hands.
The seller is actually claimed to become the estate of late property billionaire Sheldon Solow, who bought the portion inside 1982 for $1.2 million.
To market the labor throughout the pandemic, Sotheby’s displayed the painting around the world to collectors as well as possible bidders.
“The young man in the painting has done more travel during Covid than most likely anyone we know,” Stewart said.
Botticelli is most famous for “Birth of Venus,” which portrays the Roman goddess emerging from a seashell. The previous record for the job of his was the 2013 sale of Kid and “madonna with Young Saint John the Baptist” for $10.4 million.
The work will be part of Sotheby’s “Master Paintings & Sculpture” marketing on Thursday.
