It often happens that works by famous artists remain undiscovered for years, if not decades, only to be found by chance. This is exactly what happened recently in one of the London garages, with an inquisitive owner digging a fortune – ten Salvador Dali prints with the artist’s personal signature on them.

These ten lithographs by Dali were found together with five lithographs by Theo Tobiasse, a famous painter and engraver of French origin. The finding was located in one of the garages in Mayfair, a London area with plenty of wealthy households.

The Discovery of Salvador Dali Prints

According to the story told by Chris Kirkham, an Associate Director of Hansons Auctioneers, the occasional discovery happened during his visit to one of the clients’ homes where he had to perform an expert assessment of the antiques. During that assessment, the client invited him to a garage, where Chris suddenly located the pack of 15 lithographs, put together and tucked in a distant corner, lying there for around half a century.

The garage’s owner recollected that these prints had been bought for around 500 pounds at one of the London galleries’ closing sale. The date of purchase was not precise, but it happened in the 1970s. The new owner initially intended to frame them. Still, because of some distraction, he dropped that intention and then forgot about the purchase altogether, meaning that the lithographs have spent over half a century in the garage.

The owner is currently planning a retirement and overseas relocation, without the intention of bringing the entire art collection with him, so he has decided to auction the Dali legacy. The estimated cost of the prints at the Hansons forthcoming auction is £300-500 each for Dali prints and £100-300 each for Tobiasse prints. Obviously, it’s a much more modest estimate compared to the 2023 sale of Dali’s Madone à l’Enfant ou Madone Sixtine, sold by the Osenat auction house for a whopping $56,000.

A Rare Gem Is Being Auctioned This September

As this thrilling story suggests, even a regular visit to a garage can yield a rare gem for an attentive collector with a keen eye for fine art and antiques. This way, Hansons Auctioneers has received an honorable opportunity to auction the discovered Salvador Dali prints and Theo Tobiasse’s lithographs this September. The upcoming auction will open new opportunities for all appreciators of Dali’s art to acquire a new item for their collections.