Henry Moore drawing found in charity shop sells for £25k

The drawing is believed to have been motivated following his mother's death in 1944, and the birth of his only daughter soon after

A drawing by Henry Moore that was bought from a charity shop 20 years ago has sold for £25,000 at auction.

The piece by the Hertfordshire sculptor has been given the title Four Studies for Seated Mother and Child.

The owner only discovered it was an original work, complete with the artist's signature, when it was taken out of its frame recently.

Eleanor Garthwaite, a cataloguer at Forum Auctions, said cases like this were "one in a million".

She told BBC Three Counties Radio that the owner had "lived with the drawing on her wall for 20 years, not thinking it was anything particularly special".

Ms Garthwaite said a client brought in the piece for valuation "on the off chance, along with books and other things".

"As an afterthought, she said 'oh, can you look at this? It's a print by Henry Moore'," she said.

The signature (circled by BBC) was only discovered after the picture was taken out of its frame

Ms Garthwaite said the auction house only discovered it was an original watercolour "when we unframed it and looked at the back", spotting that it was painted on both sides and contained a signature.

Forum Auctions said it took two years to authenticate in collaboration with the Henry Moore Foundation.

Ms Garthwaite added: "Works by Henry Moore are always highly sought-after and this was witnessed today by competitive bidding from around the world."

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Auctioneer Dreweatts sold a newly discovered sculpture, which was also a Mother and Child piece by Moore, in March 2022, to a private collector for £400,000.

Moore is known globally for his bronze sculptures and is one of Britain's most recognised 20th century artists.

He was born in Castleford, West Yorkshire, and he later lived in Much Hadham in Hertfordshire.

The other side of the paper was also painted

Forum Auctions said the "mother and child" theme was "one of Moore's most iconic motifs", becoming a focus during World War Two.

Moore was also drawn to the subject "by two major events - his mother's tragic death in 1944, and within two years, the birth of his only daughter, Mary," the auctioneer said.

It said a double-sided drawing was "highly unusual" and was completed "in Moore's trademark mixture of inks, watercolour and wax crayon".

"Most of the time, people bring things in they swear are authentic, but they're not. This is the one in a million I would say," she added.