DrouotL’enfant et ses jouets—Gabrielle et le fils de l’artiste, Jean (The Child and His Toys—Gabrielle and the Artist’s Son, Jean), by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. A rediscovered Pierre-Auguste Renoir painting was exhibited for the first time in November 2025, later selling for $2 million at auction. The painting, L’enfant et ses jouets—Gabrielle et le fils de l’artiste, Jean (The Child and His Toys—Gabrielle and the Artist’s Son, Jean), depicts Renoir’s young son Jean playing with toys alongside his nanny, Gabrielle Renard. The oil painting spent decades in private hands before going to auction, and the artwork was virtually unknown to the wider public for over a century. The previously unseen artwork sold to an unnamed “international buyer” at Joron-Derem’s Tableaux Modernes sale at the Hôtel Drouot in Paris. Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Rediscovered Painting Was In Remarkable Condition Wikimedia CommonsPierre-Auguste Renoir, pictured in 1910. Despite its age and its recent rediscovery, L’enfant et ses jouets—Gabrielle et le fils de l’artiste, Jean (The Child and His Toys—Gabrielle and the Artist’s Son, Jean) required no restoration before it went up for auction. “We were particularly surprised by how fresh the painting was,” art historian and Renoir expert Pascal Perrin told PBS. “In other words, it is a painting that has retained all of its colors perfectly, which has not been re-canvassed, retouched, or revarnished.” The artwork was painted sometime in the 1890s and completed before 1910. It features a heartwarming scene between the artist’s second son, Jean Renoir, and his nanny, Gabrielle Renard, as they play with toys together. The painting shows the pair’s close relationship, as she was apparently able to keep the young child content for long enough to pose for the painting. “It is exceptional because, first of all, it is a masterclass of intimacy. We see this very tender relationship between Jean and Gabrielle, who knows how to control the child so that Renoir can paint him,” auctioneer Christophe Joron-Derem explained. After the painting was completed, Pierre-Auguste Renoir gave it to Jeanne Baudot, a close family friend and student of Renoir’s (who was also Jean’s godmother). She later passed the artwork down to her son Jean Griot. Griot displayed the piece in his bedroom until his death in 2011. A Story Beyond Renoir’s Rarely-Seen Painting Wikimedia CommonsThe child in the painting, Jean Renoir, went on to become a successful filmmaker. Gabrielle Renard played an important role in young Jean Renoir’s life, taking him to Guignol puppet shows in Montmartre. The boy would later grow up to become a respected filmmaker, and he specifically cited those puppet shows as being particularly influential to his early artistry. Jean Renoir made a number of impressive movies throughout his career, and his film La Grande Illusion (1937) was the first foreign-language movie to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. He later earned a Lifetime Achievement Academy Award in 1975. Through it all, the filmmaker never forgot the heartwarming experience of being painted by his father when he was younger. “When I was very small, three, four, or five years old, he didn’t choose the pose himself, but took advantage of some activity that seemed to keep me quiet,” Jean Renoir recalled before his death in 1979. Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s strong familiarity with some of his subjects had an incredible impact on his work. Indeed, the close relationships between the subjects and the artist come through in the rediscovered painting. “Time truly stands still: you can see that Jean is truly enjoying himself, and the painter is enjoying painting him,” Pascal Perrin told Artnet. Though the newly rediscovered painting is valuable, it’s certainly not the most expensive of Renoir’s works to sell at auction. That title goes to his Au Moulin de la Galette, which sold for $78.1 million in 1990. More recently, another one of his works exceeded price estimations, with Renoir’s Berthe Morisot et sa fille, Julie Manet selling for $24.5 million in 2022. Next, read about the painting found in a Connecticut barn that sold at auction for $7 million. Then, learn about the Gustav Klimt portrait of Elisabeth Lederer that recently became the second most expensive painting to ever sell at auction. The post A Previously Unseen Renoir Painting Of The Artist’s Son Just Sold For $2 Million At Auction appeared first on All That's Interesting.

University of Leicester Archaeological ServicesThis panel from the Ketton mosaic depicts the ransom of Prince Hector’s body. Archaeologists have determined that the celebrated Roman mosaic discovered in Rutland, England in 2020 depicts a “long-lost” version of the Trojan War myth. This stunning piece, known as the Ketton mosaic, has been described as one of the most remarkable discoveries in the country over the last century. But when it was first uncovered, archaeologists believed that its scenes of the Trojan War were taken from Homer’s Iliad. This famous Greek poem written circa the 8th century B.C.E. has long since become the most well-known telling of the Trojan War legend. However, researchers have recently discovered that the Ketton mosaic features a forgotten alternate telling of this epic tale of war by the Greek playwright Aeschylus that was popular in antiquity before becoming lost to history. This revelation also suggests that Roman Britain was more in touch with the wider world of the ancient Mediterranean than experts previously thought. The Discovery Of An Alternate Trojan War Narrative In The Ketton Mosaic University of Leicester Archaeological ServicesThe complete Ketton mosaic, found in Rutland in 2020. The Ketton mosaic was first uncovered in 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdown by Jim Irvine, a local resident. The English farmer happened upon the mosaic while on a walk through one of his fields. The discovery then led to major excavations by the University of Leicester Archaeological Services. Archaeologists determined that the mosaic dated back about 1,800 years. Its three panels tell a portion of the Trojan War story. The first panel depicts the Greek hero Achilles battling Hector, the prince of Troy. The second panel shows Achilles triumph in their duel, as he drags Hector’s body behind his chariot while Hector’s father, King Priam, pleads for mercy. Finally, the third panel shows Hector’s body being weighed alongside a mound of gold, the ransom that Priam will pay to Achilles in exchange for the return of the corpse. Peterborough ArchaeologyThe first panel of the Ketton mosaic, depicting the battle between Achilles and Prince Hector. Initially, archaeologists concluded that the panels drew from Homer’s Iliad, the most famous telling of the Trojan War today. However, a new study published in the journal Brittania determined that the mosaic actually features scenes from the Aeschylus play Phrygians, which features an alternate telling of the Trojan War myth. While that play has long since been lost to history, the ancient Romans certainly would’ve been familiar with it. In fact, the Rutland villa’s elite owner would have relished having a relatively rare depiction of the Trojan War in their home. In this version, when Priam visits Achilles to retrieve the body of Hector, the king uses a massive scale to give Achilles a mound of gold equal to the weight of his son in exchange for the corpse. In Homer’s version, on the other hand, a ransom is still exchanged for Hector’s body, but it’s not a portion of gold the same weight as the corpse. What’s more, Phrygians is likely not the only source material for the Ketton mosaic. Experts believe that the first panel may have come from the design on a Greek pot from the time of Aeschylus. “Once I’d noticed the use of standard patterns in one panel, I found other parts of the mosaic were based on designs that we can see in much older silverware, coins and pottery, from Greece, Turkey, and Gaul,” lead author of the study, Jane Masséglia, said in a statement from the University of Leicester. The Connection Between Roman Britain And The Ancient Mediterranean University of Leicester Archaeological ServicesThe second panel of the mosaic, rendering the dragging of Hector’s body by Achilles, takes its design from a Greek pot. Aeschylus’ play popularized this alternative telling of the Trojan War throughout the Greek world. Moreover, the use of imagery from this play, as well as designs taken from other Mediterranean countries, show that a diverse mix of classical culture spread even to the far reaches of the Roman world in Britain. “Romano-British craftspeople weren’t isolated from the rest of the ancient world, but were part of this wider network of trades passing their pattern catalogues down the generations,” Masséglia explained. “At Ketton, we’ve got Roman British craftsmanship but a Mediterranean heritage of design.” The mosaic panels, which once made up the floor of the Rutland villa’s dining room, were inspired by art and myth from across the ancient Mediterranean. As Jim Irvine put it, the new research “reveals a level of cultural integration across the Roman world that we’re only just beginning to appreciate.” Now, there’s only more to discover at the Ketton mosaic site. Post-Excavation Coordinator Rachel Cubitt said that the new research “brings an added dimension” to the other projects being conducted at the site. “This fascinating new research offers a more nuanced picture of the interests and influences of those who may have lived there, and of people living across Roman Britain at this time,” Cubitt said. After reading about the Ketton mosaic, dive into the historical debate surrounding the Trojan horse. Then, learn about the Greek gods and goddesses of ancient mythology. The post Ancient Roman Mosaic Found In England Depicts A ‘Long-Lost’ Version Of The Trojan War appeared first on All That's Interesting.

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