A John Constable painting that has been dismissed as fake could now help a struggling aristocrat pay the bills after it was discovered in the guest wing of a castle that has been in his family for 800 years.
Antiquities experts believe they have discovered an unknown work by world-renowned landscape artist John Constable at Craufurdland Castle near Kilmarnock, Ayrshire.
Craudfurdland Castle and its surrounding 600-acre estate is run by its 28th laird, Simon Houison Craufurd, and his wife Adity, who hope to pass it on to their children.
Crippling maintenance costs of over £100,000 a year, however, left Mr Craufurd and his wife worried they would have to sell.
Now the discovery of the Constable’s painting, which was initially believed to be a fake, could help Mr Craufurd avoid selling his family home – after the photo was given a potential value of £1-2million.
Simon Houison Craufurd lives with his wife Adity in Carufurdland Castle, where his family has lived for 800 years
The couple took part in the new Channel 4 show Millionaire Hoarders where experts scour properties for hidden gems that could be sold to raise cash.
The painting shows that a bridge over a body of water has been on a wall of the castle’s guest wing for generations.
It was dismissed as a bogus cop when Mr Craufurd took it to be appraised by an auction house 10 years ago.
However, antiquities scholar Ronnie Archer-Morgan spotted the painting and realized it might be genuine before spending six months investigating it for the TV series. He concluded that the couple had “the gold” in their hands.
The painting is undergoing forensic analysis by a Constable expert to confirm its authenticity ahead of a possible auction where it has been estimated at between £1m and £2m.
An early review found it to be “convincing in terms of bottom, primer colors, and handling.”
The discovery of a lost John Constable painting could help Mr Craugurd pay the £100,000 a year maintenance costs for his castle after it was valued at between £1m and £2m.
Mr Craufurd, 51, said: ‘It’s funny because it’s a painting I’ve seen I don’t know how many times and never paid any attention to it. »
“The potential that the painting could bring to what we want with the estate in the future is not just life changing for us – it is a legacy that I hope will continue for generations and generations. »
Ms Craufurd said the painting could allow the couple, who have two children, to invest in the castle and estate where they offer visitor accommodation and outdoor activities.
She said: “It would be life changing for the business, the home, everything. »
The painting bears Constable’s name on the frame with the title ‘Old Bridge over the Avon’.
However, Archer-Morgan thinks the title may have been an error on the part of the author, as his research revealed that the bridge is actually across the River Thames at Abingdon, Oxfordshire.
Constable’s sketchbooks show he was in the area when the work was created in the 1820s.
Craufurdland Castle near Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, has been in the family of Simon Houison Craufurd for 800 years
Further research into the letters held at the castle revealed that the painting had been acquired by the Craufurd family in 1918 from John Postle Heseltine, a prominent art collector who owned several masterpieces.
Constable’s The Lock became one of the most expensive British paintings ever sold when it fetched £22.4 million at auction in July 2012.
The artist was born in East Bergholt, Suffolk, in June 1776 and died in April 1837.
During their stay at the castle, antiquities experts also discovered a letter written by Robert Burns, a guest of the booked hotel signed by Charles Dickens and a painting by artist William Marlow.
These items were sold for a total of £19,000 to pay for the upkeep of the castle.
Millionaire Hoarders is on Channel 4 at 8 p.m. Friday.
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