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An oil sketch by English landscape artist John Constable that had been lost for 40 years has been rediscovered in the Channel Islands – and will be going up for auction, valued at up to £120,000.
The sketch shows the house of Willy Lott at Flatford, which appears in Constable’s most famous painting, The Hay Wain.
The work was found in a private collection in Guernsey and its whereabouts had been unknown after it was last recorded in 1979.
It was local paintings specialist Jonathan Voak of Martel Maides Auctions, who recognised that the sketch, titled Willy Lott's House, could be by Constable when it was first shown to him in 2019.
Pictured: Jonathan Voak of Martel Maides Auctions.
From having the work authenticated by leading Constable experts it has taken nearly four years to bring the sketch, which is valued at £80,000 to £120,000, to auction.
The history of the painting has been traced back to when it was owned by the artist's grandson, Hugh Golding Constable (1868-1949).
"The re-emergence of this oil sketch will make an important contribution towards establishing the chronology of Constable's work. It is dated June 1814 and provides an important point of reference against which other undated works can be compared," said Mr Voak.
Pictured: The sketch shows the house of Willy Lott at Flatford, which appears in Constable’s most famous painting, The Hay Wain.
"This beautiful, freely painted, oil study is a rare combination of a work by a great artist that has both historical significance and aesthetic appeal."
He said the auction presented an "exciting opportunity for any museum or private collector".
In Jersey, the work will be at the Hotel L'Horizon, St. Brelade, from Tuesday 12 to Thursday 14 September.
Ahead of that, the work will be on view at Art for Guernsey, St. Peter Port, from this Thursday to Saturday 9 September and at Martel Maides Auctions, St. Peter Port, on Saturday 16, Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 September.
The auction will take place at Martel Maides Auctions in Guernsey on Thursday 21 September. More information can be found here.
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