A watercolor, bought for a modest $200 at an estate auction, reveals itself to be a missing Salvador Dalí masterpiece, potentially valued at up to $40,000.
In October 2025, a rare watercolor by Salvador Dalí titled Vecchio Sultano is set to go under the hammer at an auction run by Cheffins. The watercolor, created in 1966, is part of a series of 500 illustrations inspired by the Middle Eastern folktales One Thousand and One Nights.
Dalí was commissioned to illustrate the Bible, but he insisted on creating works based on One Thousand and One Nights, reflecting his fascination with Moorish culture and belief in his Moorish heritage. However, the project was largely abandoned, with only about 100 of the intended 500 pieces completed by Dalí.
Vecchio Sultano depicts a scene from One Thousand and One Nights and was signed by the artist. It measures 38 centimeters by 29 centimeters and was created with watercolor and felt tip. The watercolor was found in a Cambridge house clearance in 2023 and was initially bought for a mere £150. It was later authenticated as an original Dalí artwork by expert Nicolas Descharnes.
The watercolor was previously owned by the Albaretto family, who were the original patrons of the project. Half of the completed works remained with the Rizzoli publishing house but were either lost or damaged, while the other half stayed with the Albaretto family, later inherited by their daughter Christina, who was also Dalí’s goddaughter.
At the house clearance sale in Cambridge, only one other person was interested in purchasing Vecchio Sultano. It is now estimated to sell for between £20,000 and £30,000 ($26,000 to $40,000) at the October 2025 auction.
The rediscovery of Vecchio Sultano highlights the historical and cultural significance of Dalí’s One Thousand and One Nights project and his personal artistic engagement with Moorish themes. This is not the first unusual discovery of Dali's work; in 2021, a woodcut of his was found in a North Carolina thrift shop.
The rediscovery of Dalí's Vecchio Sultano, with its captivating depiction of Moorish culture, is set to make a grand entrance in the fashion-and-beauty and lifestyle sectors as an icon of pop-culture in October 2025. The upcoming auction could potentially elevate this watercolor, signed by the genius surrealist, to a symbol of the intrigue and beauty present in books sticking to age-old tales such as One Thousand and One Nights. Although Dalí's One Thousand and One Nights project boasts a rich history and holds a significant position in entertainment and pop-culture today, the rediscovered Vecchio Sultano stands as a striking reminder of nature's capricious ways in unearthing lost treasures, thus adding another layer to the turmoil and transformation of art history.
