Stolen Painting Sold at Sotheby's by Thief

The New York Observer has an interesting article by Stephen Kurkjian on a stolen painting sold at Sotheby's by the thief.  Charles Hoffman claims he was moving property for an estate and was told to take what he might want for himself, taking the painting, and soon thereafter hiring an appraiser, and then taking it to Sotheby's in NY.  The painting eventually sold for $47,000.00 at Sotheby's London offices in an important British painting sale. The owner of the property was unaware the painting was missing until after the sale. The FBI is now investigating, and is attempting to determine the true owner of the painting.  Sotheby's is being criticized for not investing the background of the painting in more depth. In any event it is an interesting and entertaining story and well worth reading.

AFTER STORING THE painting for a couple of months in a shed outside his home, Mr. Hoffman decided to try to sell it. His first order of business was to determine its value, so he secured an appointment with an appraiser in New York, whom he had seen on a TV show about antiques. The appraiser, whose name Mr. Hoffman does not remember, told him the painting, made in 1769, was an original by Ramsay, who specialized in painting portraits of the British upper class. The appraiser also said the painting was in good condition.

Mr. Hoffman's next step was to set up an appointment at Sotheby's; in March or April 2007, he brought the painting to the auction house's New York headquarters. There, according to Sotheby's officials, the painting was inspected by the lead specialist in older British paintings.

Of course, Sotheby's had to take steps to ensure that the painting was, in fact, Mr. Hoffman's. According to Sotheby's spokeswoman Diana Phillips, Mr. Hoffman would have been asked the circum-stances of his ownership of the painting and to provide any documentation to prove it. A Sotheby's official, who asked not to be identified because of the ongoing criminal investigation, said Mr. Hoffman told the auction house's inspector that the painting had been in his family's possession "for some time," but that he had no documentation to attest to the ownership.

In an interview, Mr. Hoffman insisted he said no such thing to Sotheby's. He said that he told the Sotheby's inspector how Mr. Rieff had given him permission to take the painting a few months before. He added that he was asked to sign an agreement with Sotheby's that attested to his being the proper owner of the painting and agreeing to compensate the auction house if it were later proven that he had defrauded it.

To read the full NY Observer article, click HERE.