A painting by Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, believed to portray his muse and partner Dora Maar, sold for 27 million euros at an auction in Paris on Friday.
The work, titled “Bust of a Woman with a Flowered Hat (Dora Maar) 1943,” was purchased by a French family in 1944 and remained in their private collection for decades until its heirs decided to sell it.
The sale price, including fees, was 32 million euros, a spokesman for the Drouot auction house said. The buyer was in the auction room but was not identified.
The canvas had never been displayed in public before the auction and the only evidence of its existence had been a photograph of the painting from 1944, art experts said.
“It is undoubtedly Picasso’s most touching work involving his muse, because he was about to leave her (Dora Maar) for (French painter) Françoise Gilot,” said auctioneer Christophe Lucien.
“And through this portrait, we see a woman holding back tears. So it’s lucky for an auctioneer to “have a piece of art history before his eyes.”
Art expert Agnes Sevestre-Barbe said the heirs decided to offer the painting for sale because it could not be physically divided between them, writes Reuters.
With additional input by GVS US and Intl desk