Wouldn't you get a nice warm tingly feeling if, while you had some valuation people poking through your odds and ends, one of them turned pale and whispered "Oh. My. God."? This is the scene I imagine happened recently at a private house in England when a long-lost Jean-Antoine Watteau masterpiece reared its (estimated) £3-5 million head. The aptly-named La Surprise (ca. 1718) seemingly popped up out of nowhere after the Art World hadn't seen it for nearly 160 years. It was thought to be gone for good, though HM Elizabeth II holds a copy in the Royal Collection.
Here is a large digital image of the newly-discovered Real Deal. This scene represents the short-lived (1684-1721) Watteau at the peak of his craft. In it we see a musician taking five and tuning what looks to be an 18th-century 5-course guitar, while next to him a couple is sharing an enormously passionate kiss. Well, either that or the woman has a blocked airway and the young swain is administering Breath of Life first aid--this, too, would certainly constitute a "Surprise." And of course it wouldn't be truly Rococo if there wasn't a small, semi-interested dog somewhere in the picture (here it is nearly hidden towards the lower right corner, temporarily crouching and not frisking through the scene).
Turns out that this painting had been passed down for generations in the same family that acquired it via a probated bequest in 1848. The catch here is that they weren't aware of what, exactly, they had. I'm sure they do now, and equally sure they are wondering how high the bidding will go during the July 8 Old Master & British Pictures evening sale at Christie's King Street, London location.
Image credit:
Jean-Antoine Watteau (French, 1684-1721)
La Surprise, ca. 1718
Oil on panel
14 1/2 x 11 1/2 in. (36.3 x 28.2 cm.)
© Christie's Images Limited
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