Claude Lorrain Sold

This incredibly atmospheric masterwork by French artist Claude Lorrain The Embarkation of Saint Paula (1650) fetched £5,066,500 ($8,298,927) at Christie’s London sale of Old Master & British Paintings, a record price for the artist at auction. There are known copies, but this is the original. It was commissioned in 1650 by the Roman Cardinal Domenico Cecchini. By the late 18th century it was in the collection of the Earls of Portarlington and by the 19th century it had entered the collection of the English retailer WH Smith (CLICK). Export ban required?