Maculate Vision and Other Stories

‘You mean it’s a fake?’ Edward Stanton nodded sceptically at the dark canvas in its ebony frame. It would be just like Uncle Amos to have left him something worthless as a token of his disapproval.

Mr Timms stiffened. ‘By no means,’ he said. ‘It is a genuine Dutch landscape of about 1670, painted by the artist known as “The Imitator of van der Neer”—a term of convenience and not a reflection on the painting’s merit. Along with the rest of your great-uncle’s collection it was appraised by the firm of Rupprecht, Oliphant, Edeltraut and Molesworth, and assigned an insurance value of $350,000. But it could fetch much more than that at auction. There’s a limited number of Old Masters, you know.’

‘Old Masters, huh?’ Edward looked at the dim brown painting with a respect in which aesthetic appreciation had no part. 350K would get the credit agency off his back and leave plenty over for blow, booze and bitches. Maybe Uncle Amos wasn’t such a jerk after all.