Another accidental valuable art donation at Goodwill
Italian painting worth an estimated $20,000 found by thrift store employee
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A Goodwill thrift store in Manassa, Virginia a has discovered a rare Italian painting donated amongst the old hand bags, clothing and boots. A signed portrait of an old woman drinking a cup of tea by the 19th century Italian artist Giovanni Battista Torriglia was spotted by Maria Rivera, a Goodwill employee, reports Yahoo news. The rare find could be auctioned off for as much as $20,000.
This isn’t the first time that a valuable painting has turned up at the donation drop-off organization: last November, a Salvadore Dali sketch turned up at a Goodwill in Seattle and several months before that a 1000-year-old Native American vase was discovered at a Goodwill in Buffalo, NY.
We’ve had rare art turning up in unexpected places here in Canada, too. Last April, a watercolour by Group of Seven artist Frederick Varley and an oil on panel by Tom Thomson were purchased for $100 at a garage sale in Vancouver. Combined, the two painting are valued at more than $250,000.