A 15th-century painting which hung unobtrusively in a Dorset chapel for centuries has sold for a staggering £5.7 million.
The artwork of the five miracles of Christ survived religious purges and political upheavel across more than 500 years at the Almshouse chapel in Sherborne.
The panelled tripych masterpiece was almost sold for just £2,000 in the 1960s, but, by a stroke of colossal fortune, the trustees pulled out of the sale at the last minute.
It was not until earlier this year that its true, jaw-dropping value was revealed.
Administrators of the St Johns’ Almshouse had asked an auction house to safeguard the altarpiece for security reasons while the building underwent renovations.
Sotheby’s in London subsequently offered to do some research on the triptych, in an attempt to date it and identify the artist.
Eight world renowned experts analysed it using scientific methods including dendrochronology, which is the dating of tree rings, and infra-red reflectology.
The experts concluded that the chapel’s humble altarpiece was, in fact, the only surviving work of an unknown painter active in the 15th century.
They said triptych was likely fashioned from East Baltic oak between 1480 and 1490 in the School of Brussels.
Its painter is thought to have been in the circle of the Master of the View of Saint Gudule, an anonymous artist of this period known for a small group of works.
Due to its rarity and quality, the 8ft wide by 3ft high oil and gold on panel triptych was valued between £2.5 million and £3.5 million.
The almshouse said they had put the triptych up for sale as they could not afford the insurance and security costs.
Yesterday, the sale surpassed expectations when it went under the hammer, fetching £5.7 million.
The triptych sold for a staggering £5.7 million after experts concluded it was the only surviving work of an unknown Flemish painter from the 15th century.
For more than 500 years, the artwork of the five miracles of Christ survived religious purges and political upheavel at the Almshouse chapel in Sherborne.
The panelled tripych masterpiece was almost sold for just £2,000 in the 1960s, but, by a stroke of colossal fortune, the trustees pulled out of the sale at the last minute.
Richard Hunt, chair of the Almshouse Trustees, said the sale was ‘a transformative moment for the Almshouse’
Rather aptly, the proceeds will now be spent on supporting various projects to fund social housing in the Dorset market town.
Dorset Museum had hoped it could appeal to the Arts Council for a temporary export deferral to allow it more time to raise the money to keep it in the country and on public display.
But it was ultimately bought by a Christian charitable foundation which said it would return the triptych on public loan to Sherborne.
It said in a statement afterwards: ‘We already have a close relationship with the brethren at the Almshouse.
‘They are committed to long term links with the local community of Sherborne and wish to make the triptych available on a regular basis as a public loan in the town in the future.’
The Sherborne Almshouse, dedicated to Saints John the Evangelist and John the Baptist, received its royal charter from King Henry VI in 1437.
The chapel was completed in 1442, four years after a Royal Licence was granted for 20 ‘brethren’ to provide shelter for ‘twelve pore feeble and ympotent old men and four old women’.
The triptych’s central panel shows the raising of Lazarus, while the left wing depicts Christ healing a boy possessed by a demon.
The right wing shows the raising of the son of the widow of Nain, while on the exterior of the left wing are Saints Paul and James, and on the right are Saints Thomas and Peter.
The triptych was concealed inside the almshouse during the 16th century Protestant Reformation to avoid its destruction.
Its outer shutters were painted over with feigned wood grain and hidden in the board room.
It was re-hung in the hall in the early 19th century and later the chapel.
Sotheby’s said the expert analysis had allowed the panel to be ‘securely dated’ around 1480 to 1490, but there remained debate about the identity of the artist.
‘Like so many painters from this early period, the precise identity of its author remains unknown, and whether he was of Netherlandish or French extraction or training is still debated,’ a spokesman said.
‘The Sherborne Almshouse triptych is a quite remarkably intact altarpiece which has preserved its integrity from its construction and execution right through to the present day, for it has never left the almshouse in which it has been housed.
‘Its survival is of considerable rarity, for few such works have survived both the Dissolution and the Puritan Iconoclasm of the following century.’
Richard Hunt, chair of the Almshouse Trustees, said: ‘This outcome represents a transformative moment for the Almshouse.
‘For five centuries our mission has been to provide accommodation for local people in need.
‘The proceeds of this sale will enable us not only to safeguard that mission for generations to come, but also to act on it immediately, creating new homes and supporting independent living for those who are facing hardship.’
