Painting once owned by first British prime minister fetches record fee
Venice, the Return of the Bucintoro on Ascension Day (c. 1732), was sold to an anonymous bidder for £27.5 million (£31.9 million with fees) at Christie's in London last night.
The painting adorned the walls of Number 10 Downing Street during the 20 year tenure of Sir Robert Walpole, in the 1700s.
Andrew Fletcher, Christie's global head of the Old Masters Department, said the piece was 'unquestionably the greatest work by the artist to have come to the market in a generation.'
He said: 'Seldom does a true masterpiece such as this – particularly by a painter as important as Canaletto – appear on the art market.
'This extraordinary painting of the grandest and most familiar view of Venice, by the city's most recognisable painter, dates to Canaletto's finest period and is as notable for its illustrious provenance as much as for its impeccable condition.'
Christie's King Street headquarters had been decorated with a reproduction of the painting in the lead up to Tuesday's Old Masters Evening Sale, where the Venetian's work had been expected to fetch £20 million.
The oil on canvas artwork was formerly accompanied by a pendant showing The Grand Canal, looking north-east from Palazzo Balbi to the Rialto Bridge.
The pair had remained together until Venice, the Return of the Bucintoro on Ascension Day, was last sold at Paris auction house Ader Tajan in 1993.
Appearing at auction for the first time in nearly 250 years, the Venetian's work fetched 66 million French francs (£7.5m), setting a record for an Old Master sold at auction in France.
The pendant, Grand Canal from Palazzo Balbi to the Rialto, was later sold at Sotheby's in London in 2005, for £18.6m, which was formerly the record auction price for a Canaletto.
Discovery
The painting's presence in Sir Robert's collection was first noticed by British Art historian Sir Oliver, who discovered a reference in the 1736 manuscript catalogue of paintings at 10 Downing Street and in the 1751 auction catalogue when they were sold by Sir Robert's grandson, George.
While it is not known when Sir Robert acquired the Canaletto, it is likely that his son, Edward, facilitated the deal after his time spent in Venice between 1730 and 1731.
Purchase of the paintings may have been prompted by the refurbishment of 10 Downing Street in 1732-35 after the residence was offered to Sir Robert by King George II in 1732.
Falling on the fortieth day after Easter Sunday, the Feast of the Ascension of Christ was a staple of the Venetian calendar until the fall of the Republic in 1797.
On this day alone would the Doge use Bucintoro, the official galley of the Doge of Venice and a symbol of the Serenissima, to sail out to the lido and cast a ring into the water as a symbol of Venice's marriage to the sea.
The vessel depicted in Canaletto's work, the last to be made at the Arsenale, was designed by Stefano Conti, and decorated by the sculptor Antonio Corradini.
Giovanni Antonio Canal, known as Canaletto, was born in Venice in 1697. He became a favourite of British collectors, visiting England repeatedly between 1746 and 1756.
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