Stories about how the world's masterpieces were bought for a song

In this issue you will find incredible stories about people who are lucky enough to buy priceless works of art for mere pennies.

Auguste Renoir "Landscape on the Banks of the Seine"

"Landscape on the Banks of the Seine". Auguste Renoir, 1879.

In 2009, some American bought on a regular flea market in Virginia oil paintings. Purchase cost her just $ 7. For the recognition of women, it is more interested not very fabric and a beautiful frame. On the advice of her mother, she carried a purchase at the auction house. Specialists conducted a review and found that it is the original impressionist Auguste Renoir "Landscape on the Banks of the Seine". The cost of painting was estimated at 75 thousand dollars.

To the disappointment of the girls, it turned out that the picture was once stolen from the museum, so it would be resold illegally. This landscape in the style of impressionism came to the United States in 1926 due to the collector Herbert Meyu. Then the canvas was exhibited in the Art Museum in Baltimore, where it was stolen in 1951. As a result, 5 years after the discovery at a flea market in 2014 painting was returned to the museum.

Paul Gauguin "When is the wedding?"

"When is the wedding?" Paul Gauguin 1892.

During the life of Paul Gauguin, one of the classics of post-impressionism, it was unknown to date. The artist barely making ends meet. In a letter to a friend he wrote that he had no money even for a loaf of bread, so you have to eat only water and fruit, good in the tropics, where they lived, fruits were in abundance. Canvas by Paul Gauguin "When is the wedding?" Was written by him in 1892 while living in Tahiti. At the beginning of the last century it was bought for a song collector Rudolf Steffi Lin. For half a century it belonged to his family, and was recently sold to the Qatari state company Qatar Museums approximately $ 300 million. Thus, this painting became the most expensive in the world ever sold a piece of art.

Faberge Egg for $ 33 million

Faberge egg - a gift to Tsar Alexander III's wife Maria Feodorovna at Easter in 1887.

American merchant who has bought gold items at antique fairs in the Midwest US, planned to melt it for scrap, until it became clear that his discovery - a rare Faberge egg that was considered lost.

Faberge Egg with a clockwork mechanism.

The businessman bought the product for 14 thousand dollars and intended to quickly resell it a little more expensive, because the inside proved to watch from Vacheron Constantin. But egg nobody was interested. Dealer has been decided to smelt it, but then in despair scored in the network search query: "egg", "Vacheron Constantin" (inscription on the clock) - and soon came across an article the British newspaper The Telegraph, which described the Faberge eggs. After seeing the photo in the article with jewelry, hair's exactly like his purchase, the merchant rushed on the first plane to London to meet with the director of a London antique gallery Wartski Kayrenom McCarthy.

The exhibition in the mansion Derviz background, St. Petersburg, 1902.

The egg was identified as one of the lost imperial Easter eggs designed by Carl Faberge. It was one of the first creations of Faberge Alexander III gave it to his wife Maria Feodorovna at Easter in 1887. During the October Revolution of jewelry out of the hands of the Bolsheviks, and that his trail is lost.

Faberge Egg, bought for 33 million dollars.

They say that the egg was sold for $ 33 million to a private collector, and the winner of the lucky finds at flea markets prefer to remain anonymous. Perhaps it's for the best: speak not for nothing that the happiness love peace.

The marriage crown of Empress Alexandra Feodorovna

The Empress Alexandra Feodorovna in the marriage diamond crown.

After the revolution, the Bolsheviks were massively sold abroad for a song of the Imperial House jewels. In the late 20s, they sold the crown diamonds literally kilograms.

Diadem "Russian Beauty".

Reminiscent Russian kokoshnik diamond diadem "Russian Beauty" with pearl pendants which Nicholas I in 1841 ordered personally for his wife Alexandra, was sold in 1927 only for 310 pounds. In this part of this unique piece of jewelry made of platinum in 1535 was to cut the old diamonds, 25 large drop-shaped pearls, and its real value, of course, it is in the millions.

United States Declaration of Independence

1776 US Declaration of Independence.

In 1989, a man just bought a $ 4 Declaration of Independence in the frame. Buying for this price at a flea market in the state of Pennsylvania, of course, it implies that it is a copy of a historical document. But in the end it turned out that it was a genuine declaration.

The historic night 200 copies of the declaration has been issued July 4, 1776, of which up to now remained only 25 Bought at a flea market the original copy was auctioned at Sotheby's in 1990 for 2, 45 million dollars.