The $30 Tag, a Second Look, and a $250,000 Estimate

A painting by Gertrude Abercrombie, marked at $30 during an estate sale clear-out, is now headed to auction carrying an estimate of $250,000. The rediscovery began when someone who spotted the work brought it to the attention of a museum in the middle of surveying Abercrombie's output. That single tip was enough to prompt a closer look, and what had passed as a bargain turned into one of the season's more striking auction stories.

With reporting from ARTnews.