School Finds Million-Dollar Painting in Auditorium

A painting of a tribesman in the auditorium of an elementary school in North Attleboro, Mass., was recently discovered to be worth $1-million to $2-million, reports National Public Radio.

The school system’s superintendent recently asked Sotheby’s to appraise the work, “Afghans,” by the Russian artist Alexandre Iacovleff, who died in 1938. The school guessed it was worth $1,000.

But while the much higher price tag was a delight, it also created problems: how to insure the painting and protect it from thieves. The school says it cannot afford to keep the painting, even though that is what the donor wanted when he gave it to the school. It is now deciding how to proceed.