With one week left in the auction, the bidding on a painting discovered in a New Hamburg thrift shop has passed well above the piece’s assessed value.
As of Friday afternoon, bidding on the Maud Lewis painting was sitting at $45,000.
The painting, known as ‘Portrait of Eddie Barnes and Ed Murphy, Lobster Fishermen, Bay View, N.S.” was found at the Mennonite Central Committee Thrift Store in March.
Bidding had initially reached $120,000, but the auction was restarted after it was discovered that an “unqualified bidder” had pledged that amount.
Because of that, the auction was restarted last week.
The painting’s market value is believed to be $16,000.
The auction runs until May 19.
