Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said a legal team is pursuing the recovery of a valuable 17th century painting once owned King Carol I of Romania.
One day before its Old Masters sale in New York, Christie’s pulled El Greco’s Saint Sebastian (around 1610-1614), with an estimated value of between $7m to $9m, after the Romanian government blocked the sale.
Lawyers acting on behalf of the Romanian government say the painting is part of the country’s national heritage and are pursuing the recovery of the work through the Paris Judicial Tribunal.
A Christie’s spokesperson issued a statement on Tuesday, the Art Newspaper reported. “We received an inquiry about the work. Christie’s takes these matters seriously and out of an abundance of caution is withdrawing the lot at this time.”
According to Christie’s catalogue entry on the El Greco which is no longer on the auction house’s website, King Carol I of Romania acquired the painting by 1898 and donated it to the Romanian Crown the following year.
It was transferred to King Michael in 1947, the year he was forced to abdicate by the new communist regime, and stayed in Romania until 1976 when ownership was transferred to Wildenstein & Co gallery in New York.
Art advisory group Giraud Pissarro Segalot acquired the painting for a private client in 2010. That anonymous collector is the consignor. The painting was backed by a third party guarantee, adding extra pressure to resolving the matter, the Art Newspaper reported.
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