It was a childhood companion for me, it has always hung on the wall in
our house. I grew up with that painting." This family painting, which he
had appraised on the advice of a friend, was to make a retired surveyor a
millionaire. This excerpt from "Special Envoy" tells the story of an
extraordinary portrait.
When he was a child, Jacques played toy soldiers under the gentle and
questioning gaze of this portrait. Now retired, he decided to have the
family painting he grew up with and about which he knew nothing about
an appraisal. He then learns that the portrait is that of a little girl with an
extraordinary story...
The brown eyes in a hair-covered face are those of a child named
Antonietta Gonsalvus who suffered from hypertrichosis, a genetic
disorder inherited from her father. Petrus Gonsalvus had been offered as
a curiosity at the court of Henry II when he was 10 years old, and his
marriage to a very beautiful woman is said to have inspired the story of
"Beauty and the Beast".
Painted by a woman, a committed painting.
The portrait is believed to be the work of a very rare and sought-after
Italian Renaissance painter, Lavinia Fontana. Auctioneers Philippe and
Aymeric Rouillac immediately grasped the full potential of this discovery
on the art market. "Today, all museums are looking for paintings that
allow us to tell the story of history as it happened, and not as we wanted
to show it. Maybe more inclusive paintings." For Aymeric Rouillac, this
portrait "ticked all the boxes". In addition, her father adds, emphasizing
"a communion between the artist and this child", this "committed
painting" is "painted by a woman. There is no such thing as a woman
artist in the sixteenth century..."
Before it went on sale, there was still a mystery to be solved. Another
version of the portrait of Antonietta Gonsalvus, almost identical, can be
seen at the Château de Blois. Is James' a copy of it? According to
Turquin's expertise, both are from the same hand. Lavinia Fontana is said
to have made several versions of the same painting, a common practice
when a painting appealed to several buyers. His works are now highly
rated, and when one of them goes up for sale, it's a small event.
In June 2023, the portrait of Antonietta Gonsalvus was the revelation of
the one that was held in a castle in Touraine. The buyers were on the
phone, on the internet, or in the room like Jacques, the owner.
Incredulous, he intends to raise the stakes... "100 000, 200 000, 300
000... At that point, we thought, 'Where is this going to end?' It's like a
hurricane passing by..." And then, "divine surprise", they reach one
million euros. Jacques can't believe it: "It wasn't conceivable from a
neophyte's point of view. Professionals could envisage it, regulars... but
not the average person."
Finally, the portrait was sold for €1,250,000 without fees. A world record. seen on France Info video in French
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