A retired accountant was left speechless after learning that a painting left to her by her uncle is an authentic 18th-century masterpiece worth up to £100,000. Mary-Louise Wedderburn appeared on the BBC programme Fake or Fortune? where experts confirmed the portrait of an Indian woman was by Scottish artist Katherine Read.
Wedderburn had kept the painting wrapped in an old sleeping bag for safe-keeping since inheriting it two decades ago. The portrait depicts an Indian woman in formal attire, wearing a string of pearls, a large emerald pendant, and a nose ring. Wedderburn suspected it was by Read, a pioneering female artist who worked in India, but wanted verification.
Presenters Fiona Bruce and Philip Mould investigated Read's life, consulting family archives, letters, and wills. They enlisted experts including Professor Catriona Seth, Ashvin Rajagopalan, and artist Lachlan Goudie. British art historian Charles Greig, who described it as one of the trickiest paintings he had ever considered, eventually declared himself 'entirely certain' it was by Read.
Greig noted the painting is the first recorded image of an Indian person by a European woman artist, making it 'extraordinarily important'. Wedderburn, who is distantly related to Read, was overjoyed: 'It's wonderful, unbelievable... because of the family connection.'
Mould valued the painting at £100,000 upwards, citing strong interest in such culturally significant works. Bruce suggested Wedderburn could exhibit the painting, saying: 'In a sense she will be brought to life...' Wedderburn said the journey had been 'fabulous'.
