One of the most important finds came from a house clearance sale in Cambridge. Someone picked up a mixed media artwork by the famed surrealist Salvador Dalí for only £150! The artwork, called Vecchio Sultano, is currently estimated to be worth between £20,000 and £30,000.
Vecchio Sultano, made in 1966, depicts one of the stories from the great novel The Arabian Nights. This beautiful artwork is just one piece of an ambitious project that Dalí once dreamed of, consisting of 500 illustrations based on the tales. After finishing just 100 works, he kind of quit principal photography. It’s 38cm by 29cm, with Dalí’s signature in the bottom right corner.
As for John Russell, the lucky buyer of the long-lost Gallatin portrait, he can hardly believe his luck. He stated, “The auction isn’t online, so you turn up, view, and whatever you see, [that] is your chance to discover a treasure.” Russell later confessed that he wasn’t sure if he was going to actually exhibit the work, but he certainly liked pieces that were unconventional.
Dalí’s obsession with Moorish culture comes through strongly in Vecchio Sultano. Gabrielle Downie, an expert on Dalí’s work, noted that “Dalí was quite obsessed with Moorish culture and believed himself to be from a Moorish line.” This relationship brings an extra level of mystery to the paintings. Historic Paintings and Objects of Art It had been on offer in a Sotheby’s New York auction during the 1990s.
Nicolas Descharnes, an expert accredited by the Salvador Dalí Archives, has authenticated Vecchio Sultano. He provided a letter verifying its authenticity and noted that “people expect to see very surrealist pieces by Dalí. This one is not surrealist, but it’s a Dalí.”
The painting is to be sold by Cheffins in Cambridge on October 23. At an estimated value over 55 times what she paid for it, obviously Russell found out that she had hit the jackpot!