BROTHELBY’S

MONACO

Spring Sale: Curiosities, Heiresses, & Slightly Haunted Masterworks

Villa D’Or | Monte-Carlo | Champagne Preview: May 15th

Auction: May 22nd, 6:30PM (or whenever the princes finish their pétanque match)

Lot 12:

Portrait of Girl with Lemur and Emerald Pocket Watch

Attributed (with theatrical confidence) to the School of Rigaud
Medium: Oil on canvas, 92 x 68 cm
Provenance: Private collection, Liechtenstein (via Luxembourg, via “no further questions”)
Condition: Excellent, except for one emerald missing (possibly eaten by the lemur)

Estimate: €7,000,000 – €12,000,000
Sold: €25,000,000 (plus one yacht, two affairs, and a minor diplomatic incident)

Brothelby’s Notes

A dazzling addition to any collection of rogue aristocrats, colonial oddities, or veiled threats. The sitter—unknown, possibly imaginary—offers an emerald pocket watch with the dead-eyed serenity of someone who knows she’s worth more than your yacht.

The lemur? Unnamed. Likely complicit. Hidden in the opulent frame: a three-headed peacock crest, linked to a string of mysterious acquisitions, tax-free deaths, and one drowned restorer.

Attributed to a circle adjacent to the cousin of Caravaggio’s alleged barber. Rumored to have belonged to a disgraced Habsburg with moral flexibility and maritime access.

This is not just a portrait. It’s a warning, a treasure map, and a fashion statement.

Viewing by appointment. Gloves required. So is plausible deniability.

Brothelby’s thanks you for bidding—and reminds you that lemur insurance is not included.