$70 million Pablo Picasso painting gets ‘accidentally damaged’ right before auction

Valued at $70 million, Pablo Picasso’s Le Marin (The Sailor) was set to go to auction on Tuesday evening at Christie’s New York.

But the painting was pulled shortly before it was due to go under the hammer, with the auction house announcing the artwork was “accidentally damaged Friday during the final stages of preparation” and that it would now require restoration. Yikes.

“Christie’s has a very high standard of care for the objects entrusted to us and we have taken immediate measures to remedy the matter in partnership with our client,” the statement continued. No other details about the damage, or how it became damaged, were revealed.  Read more…

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