The £1,500 'mock' Rembrandt sold for £2.2m as the real thing | Art & Architecture | Guardian Unlimited Arts

The £1,500 'mock' Rembrandt sold for £2.2m as the real thing | Art & Architecture | Guardian Unlimited Arts:

"The £1,500 'mock' Rembrandt sold for £2.2m · Anonymous owner did not think picture was genuine · Small country salesroom at centre of auction drama Maev Kennedy Saturday October 27, 2007 The Guardian When taxis began to arrive from the railway station bearing a small flock of art dealers from London, the small country auction rooms suspected something was up. A few hours later, a little painting on copper of a laughing young man, valued at up to £1,500 as in the style of Rembrandt, had been snapped up by an agent for an unidentified bidder for £2.2m - £2,580,750 if you include the 15% premium which goes to the euphoric staff of Moore, Allen and Innocent auctioneers in Cirencester."