Jan. 31 (UPI) —<\/span> A lead sculpture that spent decades on the mantle of a British farmhouse was identified as a rare piece by British artist Henry Moore, and is expected to fetch up to $70,000 at auction.<\/p>\n The sculpture, which is scheduled to be auctioned March 16 by Dreweatts, was identified as a work titled Mother and Child by 20th century Modernist sculptor Henry Moore.\n<\/p>\n<\/article>\n The auction house said the sculpture was on the mantle in John Hastings’ Wiltshire, England, home from the 1970s until his death in 2019.<\/p>\n The family had Hastings’ belongings appraised after his death, and the appraiser pointed out the sculpture’s similarities to works by Moore.<\/p>\n The Hastings family contacted Dreweatts and the Henry Moore Foundation, both of which had the artwork authenticated by their respective experts.<\/p>\n Dreweatts specialist Francesca Whithams said the sculpture is considered especially rare, as Moore only worked with lead briefly in the 1930s. She said the piece was previously unknown to experts.<\/p>\n “What is significant is that the Henry Moore Foundation was not aware of the sculpture, despite Moore keeping meticulous records,” Whitham told The Times of London.<\/p>\n The sculpture is believed to have been a gift from Moore to Hastings’ father, Hubert de Cronin Hastings, who was an editor at the Architectural Review for nearly 50 years. The magazine frequently featured Moore and his artwork.\n<\/p>\n The piece was then later passed down to John Hastings.<\/p>\n “John was a countryman and farmer who bred sheep and livestock,” a representative of the family told The Times. “He was more interested in his animals than fine art. He was not concerned or bothered who the sculpture was by.”\n<\/p>\n
![\"Sculpture](\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Sculpture-that-spent-decades-on-farmers-mantle-could-be-worth-70000.jpg\" "\\"Sculpture")
\n<\/div>\nA sculpture that spent decades on the mantle in a\u00a0Wiltshire, England, farmer’s home is now scheduled to be auctioned after being identified as a piece called “Mother and Child” by 20th century British artist Henry Moore. Photo courtesy of\u00a0Dreweatts<\/p>\n