Boy, 11, gets shock of lifetime after artwork found in skip as given incredible valuation

Jim Spencer, manager of Rare Book Auctions, holding Knight, Death and the Devil, by Albrecht Dürer. (Image: Rare Book Auctions/SWNS)

Mat Winter spotted the black-and-white people among bags of rubbish astir to beryllium thrown distant everlastingly by a pistillate astatine his section tip.

The eagle-eyed schoolboy thought "it looked interesting" and asked if helium could person it and helium took the A4-sized representation backmost to his location successful Cranbrook, Kent.

Mat kept the engraving, entitled ‘Knight, Death and the Devil’ successful a cupboard for 13 years earlier having it valued earlier this year.

It turned retired to beryllium enactment of German-born Albrecht Dürer, a creator and printmaker regarded arsenic 1 of the astir talented artists of each time.

Completed successful 1513, it is 1 of Dürer's astir celebrated and influential works.

Dürer was calved successful 1471 successful Nuremberg, erstwhile the metropolis was portion of the Holy Roman Empire and became a cardinal fig of the Northern Renaissance.

He knew renowned Italian artists including Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci and created works for Emperor Maximilian I, King of the Romans.

The "museum-worthy"" people went nether the hammer astatine Rare Book Auctions successful Lichfield, Staffs., connected Wednesday (18/9) and sold for £33,390.

Delighted Mat, present 24, said: “I’ve had an oculus for antiques since I was 10 years old.

"I utilized to spell to the section rubbish extremity to spot what I could find. I discovered immoderate large stuff.

"One time a woman had immoderate rubbish successful her car including the print. I thought it looked absorbing and asked if I could person it.

"She was much than blessed to springiness it to maine due to the fact that she wanted it to spell to idiosyncratic alternatively than conscionable throwing it away.

"I was 11 astatine the clip and precise blessed she fto maine instrumentality it.

“It’s been tucked distant astatine location with each my different antique finds for the past 13 years.

Mat Winter (Image: Rare Book Auctions / SWNS)

"Recently, I decided to get it checked retired to spot if it was arsenic special as it looked. I was amazed to find retired it was.”

Jim Spencer, manager of Rare Book Auctions, said: “The Dürer sold for a premium-inclusive full of £33,390 (£26,500 hammer).

"It was purchased by a backstage collector successful Germany, truthful this German Renaissance people is going home.

"I’m thrilled for Mat and delighted the Dürer excelled.

"I've seen countless prints copying Dürer, from a overmuch aboriginal play oregon produced by a antithetic means, but I'd lone ever seen the existent happening successful museums - until now.

"When Mat sent it to maine for appraisal I didn't person precocious expectations erstwhile helium described however he'd rescued it from someone's car footwear astatine his section rubbish dump 13 years ago.

"I opened the package, removed the bubble wrapper and staggered backmost successful awe. My hands were shaking arsenic I held it up to the light.

"The laid insubstantial was perfectly close for the period.

"The prime of the engraving was exceptional beyond words. I knew that lone 1 idiosyncratic could've produced thing similar this - it had to beryllium the manus of Dürer himself.

"I shouted implicit to my member - and workfellow - Matty. He came implicit and agreed with maine instantly, it was simply excessively bully to person been engraved by anyone else.

"We spoke with the British Museum, booked our bid tickets to London, and took it there.

"It was the schoolhouse holidays, truthful the British Museum was packed with tourists. We could hardly determination inside.

Knight, Death and the Devil, by Albrecht Dürer. (Image: Rare Book Auctions / SWNS)

"It was 1 of the top privileges of my beingness to beryllium granted entree to the solitude of the Prints & Drawings Study Room wherever different Dürer engravings successful the museum's collections were cautiously laid retired for maine and Matty to see.

"A probe chap from the United States assisted america with viewing the engravings and comparing their examples with ours.

"With a magnifying glass, we were capable to cheque that each minuscule enactment matched perfectly. It confirmed what we had thought and hoped.

"This was so the existent deal.

"The probe chap shared a fig of world journals discussing the engraving, Knight, Death and the Devil.

"One of the astir important points related to an incredibly faint scratch crossed the caput of the knight's steed, which would've been accidentally swiped crossed the aboveground of the copper sheet anterior to printing, and would've been astir imperceptible.

"I checked our illustration and the scratch was present. It disappears connected aboriginal printings, truthful this sealed it. It was play and authentic.

"It's the astir important people I've ever catalogued and offered for sale."

Albrecht Dürer  (1471-1528) is considered 1 of the astir technically talented artists of each time.

One of the astir important figures of the Northern Renaissance, his enactment is chiseled from his Southern European counterparts successful its Gothic style.

He established his estimation crossed Europe successful his 20s owed to his high-quality woodcut prints. His enactment includes engravings, prints, altarpieces, portrait, self-portraits, watercolours and books.