The painting bought for 30 dollars was sold for 1.35 million dollars

At an auction held for the liquidation of a house, a small painting that was overshadowed among dozens of items would turn into one of the biggest discoveries of his life. The collector, who noticed the painting at the sale in Michigan, bought it for only 30 dollars.

According to CNN International, a faded signature stood out in the corner of the 8-by-11-inch painting, which appeared ordinary at first glance: “Abercrombie, ’51.” This small detail took the story of the work to a completely different point.

Suspecting that the painting might be American surrealist artist Gertrude Abercrombie's 1951 work titled "Alderman Merriam's Shells", the buyer began researching. After a while, he found the clue he was looking for when he visited an exhibition featuring Abercrombie's works.

In a newspaper clipping dated 1952 in the catalog of the exhibition, there was a photograph of the painting he bought for $30. Thereupon, the work was examined by experts and it was confirmed that it indeed belonged to Abercrombie.

The painting, which remained out of public view for approximately 75 years, was initially valued at between 150 thousand and 250 thousand dollars. However, the competition in the auction went far beyond expectations.

The painting was sold for 1 million 352 thousand 600 dollars. Thus, the work, which was purchased for only 30 dollars, brought its owner a sale worth approximately 45 thousand times its purchase price and became the new world auction record holder among Gertrude Abercrombie's works.

There are 10 seashells in the work. Seashells stand out as one of the symbols that Abercrombie uses repeatedly in his work.

It is stated that the shells in the painting belong to Robert Merriam, who was a city council member in Chicago. Merriam represented Chicago's 5th District from 1947-1955.

The story of the work is at least as remarkable as its sales price. It is reported that Abercrombie gave the painting to doctor John T. Reynolds in 1952 in exchange for the health services he received, and the work remained in the Reynolds family.

"Alderman Merriam's Shells" surpassed the record previously held by Abercrombie's "Message for Mercy," which sold for $1.02 million at Sotheby's in 2025.