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Artwork by famous Greek artists from 19^th and 20^th century will be put up for an auction on November 9 in London during the fall Greek Sale in Sotheby’s house. “The fortune teller” painting by Nikolaos Gyzis was found not too long ago and put up for sale in July with a starting price of between €230 000 and €350 000.

The destiny of this painting was unknown for many years, until it was found out that for half a century it was part of a private collection in the US. This spring it was announced that it will be part of the Sotheby’s auction during fall. Out of many other artists Gyzi is believed to be the father of Greek painting and the artwork itself was painted in Munich in 1880. The painting depicts a single girl, surrounded by her friends, who is blushing and slightly turning her head away while an old lady is reading her palm.

“This painting gives us the chance to rediscover Gyzis’ art,” says Konstantinos Frangos, director of the Greek art department in Sotheby’s. He also said that at the auction the buyers will be able to purchase rare works of art, which for many years have been part of private collections.

A total of 173 works of art will be offered at the auction and it is expected that the sales will reach $4 million. Spiros Vasoliou’s painting “Patisia Street, Athens”  (1930) will be one of the main works of art at the auction and its value is estimated to be between €90 000 and €135 000.

Ever since Sotheby’s started the specialized Greek sales in 2001, more than 500 paintings have been sold, which have brought a profit of €17.3 million and have reached record prices for more than forty Greek painters, among whom are Theodoros Ralis, Yannis Moralis, Spiros, Papaloukas, Nikos Engonopoulos, Nikos Hadjikiriakos-Gikas, Nikolaos Litras and Alekos Fasianos. This year the included in the auction will be paintings by Yannis Spiropoulos, Georgios Yakovidis, Georgios Bouzianis and Nikos Hadjikiriakos Gikas.