Art: Face in the Mirror

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Of all the faces he put on canvas, Rembrandt van Rijn was fondest of the one he saw in his own mirror. Experts have identified about 60 Rembrandt self-portraits, which have been cropping up in strange places ever since the master died in 1669. Last week another of Rembrandt's self-portraits was in the news, with a typical tale of mystery attached.

The picture first came to light in London 33 years ago. An Italian nobleman, the Marchese Guido Serra di Cassano, was decorating a town house by buying wholesale lots of pictures at a few pounds apiece. Browsing about one run-down little antique shop, he spied a medium-sized (29 in. by 24½ in.) canvas, showing an aged man in dark brown coat and dark velvet hat, staring moodily out at the world with large, pained eyes. The dealer was glad to include the picture in the sale for an extra $25. Then the marquis had it cleaned, and experts identified the picture as an authentic Rembrandt, probably painted around 1660, nine years before the artist's death.

The marquis' $25 investment turned into one of the most profitable in the history of art. His Rembrandt brought $100,000 from a wealthy Glasgow merchant, whose widow later presented the painting to Britain's Fairbridge Society, which sends underprivileged children to its farms in Australia.

Now the Fairbridge Society has turned its Rembrandt over to a new owner. George Farkas, 51, a wealthy owner of a New York department-store chain (Alexander's) and a collector with a special interest in 17th century Dutch paintings, had snapped it up for $42,000. London's dealers thought the price too high: though Rembrandt's genius was at its peak in his late period, the picture is not one of his best efforts. But Farkas was not disturbed by the critics. Said he: "I'll keep it a couple of years, then give it to some museum. I feel every good picture should find its way to a museum these days."