A previously unknown artwork by the Italian artist Canaletto is set to be auctioned later this month. The rare capriccio is estimated to achieve between £40,000 and £60,000 when it goes under the hammer at Mallams auction house in Abingdon, Oxfordshire.
Mallams stated that the 18th-century Venetian master created the artwork using pen, brown ink, and a light grey wash on paper. Art historian John Rolfe called the work, titled "Ruins of a Pavilion and an Arcade over the Water," a "masterpiece."
The auction house said the unrecorded work corresponds with a Canaletto painting last sold in 1995. It is believed to have been acquired by the Georgian composer Charles Burney and has remained with his family.
Rupert Fogden, Mallams' director of fine art and pictures, said original paintings and drawings by Canaletto rarely come to auction. He added that the auction house anticipates significant interest from private collectors and institutions globally.