Archive · 3 Oct 2026
Missing Abercrombie Painting Bought for $30 Sells for $1.35 Million
A collector went to an estate sale in Michigan to look for records.
There, they noticed a painting and found the artist’s name on its back.
They paid just $30 for it.
The painting was made by Gertrude Abercrombie in 1951.
It had been given to a doctor in 1952 and stayed with his family for many years.
Experts restored it before it was sold at auction.
The painting brought in more than $1.35 million.
That was a record price for Abercrombie’s art.
A collector bought Gertrude Abercrombie’s painting Alderman Merriam's Shells for $30 at a Kalamazoo estate sale.
The painting, created in 1951, had been out of public view for decades.
It was originally given to Dr. John T. Reynolds in 1952 in exchange for medical treatment.
Freeman's sold the restored artwork for $1,352,600, including the buyer's premium.
The sale set a world auction record for Abercrombie and was the first time one of her works exceeded $1 million.
- Who
- A collector bought a painting by Gertrude Abercrombie; Freeman's auctioned it.
- What
- A painting bought for $30 sold for $1,352,600, including the buyer's premium.
- When
- The painting was created in 1951, given to Dr. John T. Reynolds in 1952, and sold more than 70 years later.
- Where
- It was discovered at an estate sale in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and sold by Freeman's in New York.
- Why
- The sale followed the painting's rediscovery, restoration, and recognition as a significant work by Abercrombie.
- Painting
- Alderman Merriam's Shells
- Artist
- Gertrude Abercrombie
- Year painted
- 1951
- Estate-sale price
- $30 (reported as Rs 2,800)
- Auction result
- $1,352,600, including the buyer's premium
- Original auction estimate
- $15,000 to $250,000
- Restoration
- Baumgartner Fine Art Restoration in Chicago