An art and antiques dealer from Cambridge purchased a watercolour measuring 38 x 29 cm at a house clearance sale in 2023. He paid £150. Intrigued by the piece, he began researching its origins and discovered it was an original work by Salvador Dalí titled Vecchio Sultano (“Old Sultan”), created for the artist’s Italian friends Giuseppe and Mara Albaretto.
See also: Salvador Dalí: Art Crazy
Gabrielle Downie, from the Fine Art department at Cheffins auction house, explained in a press release: "The Albarettos who commissioned this work had initially asked Dali to illustrate a bible in 1963, but upon Dali’s insistence, he instead ended up illustrating scenes from 1001 Nights – a collection of Middle Eastern folktales. It seems Dali was fascinated with Moorish culture and believed himself to be from a Moorish line. It seems that this project was abandoned, with Dali only having completed 100 of the intended 500 works. Of these 100, half remained with the publishing house Rizzoli and were either damaged or lost; the other 50 stayed with the Albarettos and were later inherited by their daughter, Christina, who was also Dali’s goddaughter. It is the 50 that were retained by the family that were published in 2016 by the Folio Society. I think, given that Dali engineered the commission to suit his whims, that he very much enjoyed this project and the subject matter. It is most likely that the work in question came from the batch of 50 which were retained and later lost by the publishers.”
The painting’s authenticity has been confirmed by Dalí expert Nicolas Descharnes and by Cheffins, which will offer the work for sale on 23 October as part of its Art & Design Sale. It is estimated to sell for between £20,000 and £30,000.
See also: Dalí in Wonderland: His Surrealist Illustrations for Lewis Carroll's Classic
However, this is not the first time the painting has appeared at auction. Downie notes: “The seller, who wishes to remain anonymous, completed the initial research on the painting and discovered that the picture had been offered for sale at Sotheby’s in the 1990s fully attributed to Dali. The loss of an attribution is quite rare in the modern artworld making this a significant rediscovery for Dali scholars. To handle a genuine rediscovery of a work by who is easily one of the most famous artists in the world, and the godfather of Surrealism, is a real honour. It has been an exciting process researching and having this painting authenticated and it is a testament to the sellers’ significant art knowledge that he was able to spot this picture at a house clearance sale. While Dali’s work is often some of the most recognisable, this is an unusual piece which shows a different side to his practice when working in watercolour.”
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Vecchio Sultano is expected to be one of the highlights of Cheffins’ autumn sale. The Cambridgeshire auction house is also marking its 200th anniversary this year.
