09.11.2026 20:44
A painting worth millions of dollars has emerged from a wooden box that had been hidden for about 40 years in a closet in an elderly woman's home in the US. The work, found behind fur coats, was determined to be one of famous painter Georgia O'Keeffe's lost paintings. The painting, purchased for $3,800 in 1963, is expected to sell for $3 million at an auction to be held on November 17.
In New York City, USA, a woman's organizing her aunt's belongings resulted in a discovery that drew attention in the art world. A painting that emerged from a wooden box unopened for years in an apartment in Manhattan's East Village turned out to belong to American painter Georgia O'Keeffe.
KEPT HIDDEN IN A CLOSET FOR 40 YEARS FOR FEAR OF THEFT While helping organize the belongings in her elderly aunt's home, a woman named Betsy noticed a valuable painting in a wooden box hidden behind fur coats.
The painting had been given to its owner by her mother as a graduation gift in the 1960s and hung on the wall of the house for a long time. However, in the 1980s, a guest's intense interest in the painting worried the owner about theft. Thereupon, the painting was placed in its original box and put away in the closet, and it was not brought to light for about 40 years.
AUTHENTICITY CONFIRMED The painting found in the box was identified as Georgia O'Keeffe's 1930 work titled "Near Abiquiu, New Mexico I." The painting, measuring approximately 25 by 61 centimeters, depicts Lobo Peak in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As a result of examinations by art experts, the authenticity of the work was confirmed. Previously, only a photograph taken in 1931 and its record in the painter's catalogue raisonné were known.
Near Abiquiu, New Mexico I VALUE WAS ASTOUNDING In research into the work's history, it was determined that it was purchased from the Downtown Gallery in New York on April 15, 1963, for $3,800. After 63 years, the painting has been valued at approximately $3 million. This figure corresponds to about 150 million Turkish lira.
TO BE AUCTIONED The work, which resurfaced years later, will be offered for sale at an auction organized by Christie's auction house in New York on November 17, 2026. Before the auction, the painting will be exhibited free of charge to visitors between November 7 and 17.
Meanwhile, it was learned that the elderly woman who owned the work died at the age of 98 shortly after the painting was rediscovered.