Buried in the original layer of paint in the lower edge of the 17th-century oil sketch are two fingerprints – presumably those of the painting’s creator – Rembrandt van Rijn. Pressed into wet paint, the prints, which are most certainly impressions of the artist’s thumb, had been hidden underneath overpaint and darkened varnish layers and were only recently discovered during technical examination and restoration. The distinguishing marks, while difficult to prove conclusively, are believed to be the only known fingerprints of the Dutch master. A highlight of Sotheby’s Old Masters Evening Sale on 5 December, Study of a Head of a Young Man, a little-known masterpiece, will be offered with an estimate in the region of £6 million. A touching portrayal of Christ, the work until recently hung in the artist’s house in Amsterdam and comes to the market for the first time in 60 years.

Two days after America celebrates Thanksgiving in traditional style, Palm Beach Modern Auctions will add to the holiday spirit with its own bounteous feast of modern and contemporary art at a Saturday, November 24 auction. In addition to offering guests rare and impeccably documented works by the most sought-after names in design, co-owners Rico Baca and Wade Terwilliger will host a catered, fall-themed buffet lunch. “No leftover turkey — we promise!” Baca said. There will also be complimentary valet parking, snacks and drinks throughout the day, and chair massages starting at 4 p.m. As guests settle in, they will see “one of the most beautiful ‘shows’ in the art and design world,” said Baca. “Every one of our auctions is a carefully planned production, with every piece selected for its quality and market relevance, then carefully curated and researched.” Picasso, Miro, Koons, Wesselman

A stunning oval portrait by Thomas Gainsborough of his nephew and apprentice, Gainsborough Dupont, has been cleaned by the National Portrait Gallery conservation studios to reveal the artist’s original brushwork and vibrant colours. This is the first time in over 100 years this painting has been lent from its home at Waddesdon Manor, and was conserved especially for the forthcoming exhibition Gainsborough’s Family Album, opening at the National Portrait Gallery London on 22 November. It was only identified as a portrait of Dupont in 2003 by Susan Sloman, author of Gainsborough in Bath and a contributor to the book accompanying Gainsborough’s Family Album. This portrait offers a magnificent display of Gainsborough’s talent. Inspired by Van Dyck, Gainsborough has transformed the teenage son of a humble Suffolk carpenter into a gilded youth who looks as if he had stepped straight out of the court of Charles I. At the

A writer who thought she had found a painting by Pablo Picasso stolen in an infamous art heist six years ago said Sunday she was the victim of a “publicity stunt”, Dutch media reported. Picasso’s “Harlequin Head” was one of seven celebrated paintings snatched from the Kunsthal museum in Rotterdam in 2012 during a daring robbery local media dubbed “the theft of the century”. The artworks by Picasso, Monet, Gauguin, Matisse and Lucian Freud have not been seen since. But Dutch writer Mira Feticu, who wrote a novel based on the brazen heist, thought she had uncovered the piece after she was sent an anonymous letter around 10 days ago “with instructions regarding the place where the painting was hidden” in Romania. Feticu, of Romanian origin, told AFP the tip-off led her to a forest in the east of the country where she dug up an artwork wrapped in plastic. Romanian authorities, who were handed the canvas on Saturday night, said that it “might be” Picasso’s painting, which is esti