Van Dyck Found!

Old-master paintings can turn up in the most unexpected places. You don't expect to find a previously unknown Van Dyck on a website, but this was what happened with Van Dyck's Portrait of Lady Olivia Boteler Porter, lady-in-waiting to Charles I's wife Henrietta Maria. It was brought out of storage at the Bowes Museum in County Durham to be photographed for the Public Catalogue Foundation, which aims to document every oil painting in UK public ownership. Tatty and neglected, it was thought to be a copy worth only a few thousand pounds. Uploaded to the Your Paintings website, its digital image was spotted by art expert Bendor Grosvenor, best known for his appearances in Fake Or Fortune? The portrait certainly isn't one of Van Dyck's best, but it has been verified by Van Dyck expert Dr Christopher Brown and is thought to be worth at least £1m (CLICK). The BBC has posted a brief video: CLICK. Viewers in England can see Your Paintings: A Culture Show Special on BBC TWO today at 6.30pam (CLICK)