Three masterpieces of French painting, recently returned to the family of Levi restitution, estimated nearly 20 million pounds

• Camille PISSARRO White frost, a young peasant girl lighting a fire, 1888
  Estimate: us $10.4–, 15.6 million
  Courtesy Sotheby's
  Source: artsy.net
• Paul SIGNAC Golden horn. Morning. 1907
  Estimate: us $6.5–9.1 million
  Courtesy Sotheby's
  Source: artsy.net

• Paul SIGNAC, the Quay de Clichy. The gray weather. 1887
  Estimate: $0,783 1 million
  Courtesy Sotheby's
  Source: artsy.net

Paintings at the time had been in the hands of the Nazi invaders, will be sold at London auction Sotheby's February 4, heirs of the famous collector of Gaston levy, recently became the owners of works of restitution.

up to 2018 "White frost" Pissarro and the "Golden horn" Signac, was stolen by the Nazis from Paris apartment levy after the collector, escaping, fled to North Africa, were in the Musee d'orsay — there they were after the war.

"White frost," by the way, besides the fact that is the top-лотом the February auction, considered one of the best puantilistskie works of Pissarro. In the letters, the artist mentions that it took him six months to complete it. It is expected that the painting will be sold for 12 million pounds (15 million dollars). This is slightly less than the auction record for the artist — £19.6 million for the work of "Boulevard Montmartre, spring morning" at the London auction Sotheby's in 2014.

the Head of impressionist and modern art auction house Sotheby's Thomas Boyd-Боуман stated The Guardian: "it is a Pity that the museums have lost these jobs, but this is a good example of decent behavior by the state. It's the right thing to do", adding that "looting and vandalism should not benefit other people."

the Third work — landscape "Quay de Clichy" — were stolen from the country house of the collector and subsequently found in Munich's famous possession of Cornelius Gurlitt. It is known that this landscape became the seventh picture from the vault Gurlitt, identified by researchers as stolen Nazi art. The heirs of Levi the work was returned in July 2019.

Gaston prosper Levi survived the war and died in 1977. He was a Builder and businessman, the founder of the French supermarket chain Monoprix. In addition, he was one of the famous French collectors and patrons of the first half of the last century. Was known for his friendship with Signac and even funded his writing project 107 ports during annual trips throughout France.

One of the interesting appearances of the items of his collection on the market — sculpture "Head" by Amedeo Modigliani, sold for a record at that time, for €43.2 million ($52,8 million) at auction Christie's in Paris in 2010.

the Material was prepared by Maria Kuznetsova AI

Sources: amp.theguardian.com, artsy.net