Long-lost Constable painting found in basement

A mystery painting found in a South London basement could be a long lost Constable.

The painting, found in a house in Beckenham, South London, is believed to be a long-lost work by John Constable R.A. (1776 – 1837) known as A Summer Meadow. The work is currently under examination by art history academics at the National Gallery in London.

"It certainly looks like an original Constable," said Trix Pestrames, who is senior curator for historic art works at the gallery. "Although there is always the chance that it was painted by one of the artist's followers." She went on to explain that the only way to fully authenticate the work would be to conduct X-ray and pigment-dating tests, as well as doing other checks on the work's provenance. This, she said, would take several months to complete. The gallery is also searching its archive of the artist's sketchbooks to establish if there is any other reference to the completed work in the records.

Meanwhile, the finders of the work are keeping a low profile. Asking to remain anonymous for the time being, the owners of the house in a downmarket part of the suburban town are understandably excited.

"We were gobsmacked to come across the painting in our cellar during a spot of cleaning up," said the mother of the family of five.

"Yes we were," agreed the father.

A new painting by Constable was discovered only last year. A British couple found a Constable painting in the guest wing of their 16th-century castle in Scotland. The Craufurdland Castle Discovery was initially dismissed as a fake, until it was revealed to be a genuine work by the great painter. According to experts from Sotheby's New York, the painting, which is titled Old Bridge over the Avon, could be worth $2 million (£1.56 million) or more.

Another recently discovered Constable masterpiece can be seen in Brighton’s Royal Pavilion. Colliers Unloading on Hove Beach was discovered in 2022, a sketch acquired by art dealer Danny Katz, and which had previously belonged to 19th-century Paris art collector Camille Groult.

What does the Beckenham family plan to do with their discovery?

"Oh, sell it at auction of course," said Mum, whom we will call Stella, to protect her identity. "We have no interest at all in art and would rather spend the money on a nice holiday with the kids and a new car."

There has been some speculation as to the church in the picture. Some experts have said that they think it could be the former parish church of St George at Beckenham, before it was demolished to accommodate the 19th century structure that still stands in the town to this day.

Art historians have been comparing the image of the church in the painting to historical records currently held in the town's library archive. At least they would be, if they could gain access to the archive, which is proving problematic.

Meanwhile, social media has been alive with speculation as to the location of the painting. Although members of the popular Facebook forum Beckenham Appreciation Group (BAG for short) have been claiming that the painting is indeed depicting the then rural district of Beckenham and its former parish church, other Facebook groups are disputing the claim.

Watch this space for further news.

If you are interested in the works of Constable, you might like to read the author's commentary on a better known work of the artist: Constable, The Cornfield, which can be seen at the National Gallery London.

More artistic commentaries from the author:

Taylor on art

More Beckenham tall tales by the author:

Beckenham tales

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