Art experts doubt Goldie painting selling for $420,000 is real
Art experts and auctioneers have raised serious doubts about the authenticity of a painting attributed to C.F. Goldie, currently listed for $420,000. Despite the gallery's claims of research and authentication, professionals who previously inspected the work believe it is not a genuine Goldie.
Why it matters
The incident highlights the risks in the high-end art market and the importance of rigorous provenance and expert consensus in verifying historical works.
<p>Serious doubts have been raised over a purported Goldie painting listed for $420,000.</p> <p><b>By Katie Todd and Pokere Paewai </b><a href="https://www.rnz.co.nz/life/culture/art-experts-have-serious-doubts-goldie-painting-selling-for-usd420-000-is-real" target="_blank"><b>of RNZ</b></a></p> <p>Six art experts and auctioneers – including four who previously inspected Lost in Thought, Ngāheke, An Arawa Chieftain – have told RNZ they do not believe the painting is by Goldie.</p> <p>The <a href="https://www.1news.co.nz/2026/07/13/goldie-portrait-missing-for-a-century-goes-on-sale/" target="_blank">sale was announced by Christchurch gallery NZ artbroker</a> this week, following what it described as a journey of research, multiple authentications and valuations confirming the work's historical and artistic significance.</p> <p>It said the piece, which disappeared from public view for over a century, had been traced to an art exhibition in Christchurch in 1917 through its frame details, and its subject had been identified as Patara Te Ngūngūkai – a high-ranking chieftain and tohunga of the Tuhourangi Ngāheke hapū of Te Arawa.</p> <p>The piece was purchased from an estate in Melbourne in 2020…
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