This Lost Van Gogh Could Make History After Half a Century

A Van Gogh that has barely been seen for more than half a century has suddenly resurfaced. And not quietly. Châtaigniers en fleurs will go under the hammer in November in New York, where the painting could easily set a new auction record.

Van Gogh painted the blooming chestnut trees in May 1890 in Auvers-sur-Oise, during the final months of his life. After his death, the work remained in private hands and changed ownership several times. In 1975, it came via art dealer Wildenstein to the Argentine family Blaquier-Arrieta.

After that, it virtually disappeared from view. The collection was kept for decades on the family estate outside Buenos Aires, while the painting was last publicly shown in 1964 at the Guggenheim Museum in New York. In 2011, works from the collection passed to the couple's children. They are now bringing part of the collection to the international auction market.

This also makes the auction financially interesting. How much the family paid for the Van Gogh at the time is not publicly known, and therefore neither is how much profit might be made. What is certain is that the work is now estimated at approximately 180 million dollars. A sum that shows how exceptionally high the valuation for important works by Van Gogh has become.

Alongside Van Gogh, the family is also bringing works by Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Camille Pissarro to auction. In total, twelve works from the Blaquier-Arrieta collection will go under the hammer, with a combined estimated value of nearly 450 million dollars.

All eyes will be on Châtaigniers en fleurs on 18 November, however. The current public auction record for Van Gogh stands at 117 million dollars. A sale around the current estimate would far exceed that figure.