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Jane Austen portrait fetches £164,500 | |
(about 13 hours later) | |
A painting described as the "most famous image" of Jane Austen has sold at auction for £164,500. | |
The James Andrews watercolour was commissioned by the novelist's nephew in 1869 and a version will appear on the new £10 note from 2017. | |
Dr Gabriel Heaton of auction house Sotheby's said the painting had been "crucial in transforming her from a novelist into a national figure". | |
Sotheby's said it was bought by an anonymous private collector. | |
The Jane Austen House Museum in Chawton, Hampshire, said it did not bid because it could not raise the funds so soon after buying a ring that belonged to the author for £149,000 in September. | |
The painting had a pre-sale estimate of £150,000-£200,000. | |
The Reverend James Edward Austen-Leigh, Austen's nephew, asked artist James Andrews to create the painting for a biography. | |
It was based on the only confirmed portrait of Austen made before her death in 1817 - a sketch by her sister Cassandra, which is in the National Portrait Gallery. | |
He felt the sketch of his aunt did not do her justice, and used Andrews' painting for his book Memoir of Jane Austen. | |
Dr Heaton called the painting the "most important likeness of Jane Austen ever likely to appear on the open market". | Dr Heaton called the painting the "most important likeness of Jane Austen ever likely to appear on the open market". |
"Seeing the most famous image of Jane Austen, for the first time, in a domestic sitting room was an astonishing experience," he said. | "Seeing the most famous image of Jane Austen, for the first time, in a domestic sitting room was an astonishing experience," he said. |
"This delicate watercolour is so much more than a piece of literary portraiture - it is part of our cultural history." | "This delicate watercolour is so much more than a piece of literary portraiture - it is part of our cultural history." |
He said the portrait gave readers "an image with which they could identify and which even seemed to embody the character of her work". | He said the portrait gave readers "an image with which they could identify and which even seemed to embody the character of her work". |
Austen's novels include Emma, Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility. | Austen's novels include Emma, Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility. |