Newly-discovered 16th/17th-century portrait of Suleyman the Magnificent is seen before it was auctioned at the Sotheby's auction house with the name of "Arts of the Islamic World & India" composed of 183 artifacts in London, United Kingdom on March 29, 2021. ( Hasan Esen - Anadolu Agency )
LONDON
A rare 16th-century portrait of Suleiman the Magnificent, the longest-reigning Ottoman sultan, fetched a hefty £350,000 ($481,000) sale price in an auction on Wednesday in London.
The portrait was on offer for collectors in live bidding at famed auction house Sotheby’s starting at £80,000.
The sale price nearly tripled pre-auction estimates, which predicted the portrait could be sold for as high as £120,000.
Arts of the Islamic World & India auction at Sotheby's in London
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - MARCH 29: Newly-discovered 16th/17th-century portrait of Suleyman the Magnificent is seen before it was auctioned at the Sotheby's auction house with the name of "Arts of the Islamic World & India" composed of 183 artifacts in London, United Kingdom on March 29, 2021. ( Hasan Esen - Anadolu Agency )
The painting was formerly part of a family collection in France since the 19th century.
The painting is a likeness of two 16th century portraits, according to Sotheby’s.
It is associated with a portrait attributed to Cristofano Dell' Altissimo in Florence’s Galleria Degli Uffizi and a smaller portrait of Archduke Ferdinand II exhibited in Vienna’s Kunsthistorisches Museum.
The painting “opens a window onto a narrative of artistic exchanges between Venice and the Ottomans in the 1530s,” according to Sotheby’s.
Suleiman the Magnificent ruled for nearly a half century, from 1520 to 1566.
Wednesday’s auction also included a portrait of Suleiman’s daughter Mihrimah Sultan, by Titian, the 16th century Venetian artist. The painting was sold to a buyer for £60,000.
Ottoman velvet work from the “distinguished collection of Edgar Vincent, 1st Viscount d’Abernon” was also on auction.
