Leonardo da Vinci bear sketch might fetch over $16M
Written by Megan C. Hills, CNN
A tiny sketch of a bear by Leonardo da Vinci is expected to sell for over $16 million at auction.
The item is one of only eight Leonardo drawings left in private hands, according Christie’s, the auction house organizing the sale.
Measuring less than 8 square inches, the drawing was made on pale pink-beige paper using silverpoint — a technique, taught to Leonardo by his master Andrea del Verrocchio, that involves marking chemically treated paper with silver rods or wire.
The sketch has changed hands several times over the centuries — in fact, it was once sold by Christie’s for just £2.50 (about £312, or $439, in today’s money) in 1860. Titled “Head of a Bear,” it has since been displayed at major institutions including the National Gallery in London, Louvre Abu Dhabi and Saint Petersburg’s State Hermitage Museum.
In a press release, the chairman of Old Master paintings at Christie’s New York, Ben Hall, called the sketch “one of the most important works…
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