A WATERCOLOUR by the man regarded by many as Britain's greatest artist is expected to fetch more than £500,000 when it goes under the hammer next month.
The view of Scarborough was painted by Joseph Mallord William Turner in 1818 and is to be auctioned at Christie's, in London, on June 6.
The painting is one of a series that Turner produced featuring the resort and its castle and measures 15ins by 11ins.
It was later acquired by the great Victorian art critic and author John Ruskin who had earlier met Turner and who was determined to rescue the great painter from obscurity and neglect.
In 1881, Ruskin gave the painting to Arthur Severin as a wedding present when he married Ruskin's niece and the picture remained in the family for many years.
The painting is being sold at the British Art on Paper sale and the estimated price of £500,000 is regarded as a conservative prediction.
"It is quite likely to soar well above that," said one expert.
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