Rembrandt painting discovered in Maine attic sells for almost $1.2 million

The “Portrait of a Girl” was found during a routine house call by an appraiser for an auction house.

A painting by the Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn that was recently discovered in the attic of a Maine home has sold for nearly $1.2 million at auction.

The 17th century oil painting in a hand-carved Dutch frame, titled “Portrait of a Girl,” was found by Kaja Veilleux, owner, appraiser, and auctioneer for Thomaston Place Auction Galleries in Thomaston, Maine, WMTW reports. Veilleaux told the station he found the painting by the Dutch master during a routine house call for an estate in Camden, Maine.

“On house calls, we often go in blind, not knowing what we’ll find,” he said. “The home was filled with wonderful pieces, but it was in the attic, among stacks of art, that we found this remarkable portrait.”

According to Thomaston Place Auction Galleries, the portrait is unsigned but a label on the back attributes the work to Rembrandt and notes the painting was lent by the Philadelphia Museum of Art for a 1970 exhibition. According to the auction house, the painting sold for $1,175,000 on Aug. 24.