Suzanne's Mom's Blog

Photo: Hansons Auctioneers.
Ten rediscovered Salvador Dalí prints were scheduled to be auctioned off in September. 

Have you ever bought something and stored it away, only to forget about it for years? I have. Mystery objects turned up when I was downsizing, but nothing of great value. I remember a folk art candle holder of brown painted pottery, for example. It was sweet, but I have no idea why or when I bought it.

Lianne Kolirin at CNN wrote about a different kind of discovery.

“Ten signed Salvador Dalí lithographs have been discovered in a garage in London, where they have been stashed for half a century. The artworks, which were discovered by an auctioneer during a routine valuation, are now expected to fetch several thousand dollars at auction.

“The colorful prints were uncovered when the expert was called to a property in Mayfair, central London, to give the customer an assessment of some antiques at the property. But the visit took a turn when the pair went out to the garage of the client, who has not been identified.

“Chris Kirkham, associate director of London’s Hansons Richmond auction house, recalled … ‘It was an amazing find. … I was invited to assess some antiques at a client’s home. During the visit the vendor took me to his garage and, lo and behold, out came this treasure trove of surrealist lithographs – all 15 of them.’

“Together with the 10 Dalí lithographs, which are a mixture of mostly mythological and allegorical scenes, were another five by Theo Tobiasse, a French painter, engraver, illustrator and sculptor.

“ ‘They’d been tucked away and forgotten about for around 50 years. It felt quite surreal. You never know what you’re going to uncover on a routine home visit,’ said Kirkham. … ‘The prints ended up in his garage. They were rediscovered because the seller has been having a clear out. He’s looking to retire and move abroad, so now his lithographs will finally see the light of day at auction. …

“Dalí, a leading member of the Surrealist group, was born in Figueres in Catalonia in 1904 and died there in 1989. A prolific artist, he was renowned for his bizarre images which famously included melting clocks.”

According to Artnet News, the seller, who “paid just $655 for the lot in the 1970s,” sold them in September for $26,200. (Click here.)

More at CNN, here. I once read that it’s advisable to do downsizing regularly — maybe every year. That way you find out what you’ve got that would be better to move elsewhere. Maybe it would help if every time we acquired something new, we promised ourselves to give away something else.