Rare Black Madonna painting heads to auction after 200 years in one family

A Cusco School Black Madonna and Child painting from around 1700 will be sold at Sloane Street Auctions in London on July 15, with an estimate of £20,000 to £50,000. The work has stayed in the Messina/Grisewood family for more than two centuries and is being offered publicly for the first time.

Why it matters: - The painting is a rare early example of Cusco School religious art that blends European Catholic imagery with pre-Hispanic Andean culture. - The work has remained in one family for roughly 250 years, making its auction debut unusually important for collectors of Old Masters and colonial Latin American art. - Sloane Street Auctions expects the picture to draw interest because of both its historical provenance and its estimated value of £20,000 to £50,000.

What happened: - Sloane Street Auctions will sell a Black Madonna and Child painting on July 15 in London. - The oil on canvas dates to around 1700 and is described as a Cusco School work from Peru. - The painting comes from the Messina family, who have owned it since the 18th century. - The work is unframed and measures 32 x 22 inches. - Live online bidding will be available through Sloane Street Auctions.

The details: - The Messinas were Sicilian nobles linked to the Norman conquest of the island around 1,000 years ago. - The family owned Messina Palace in Palermo. - Count Giovanni Messina died in 1800 after being executed in Catanzo during the purge of the Neapolitan nobility that followed the revolutions in Naples. - The family was targeted because it supported Bourbon rule of Sicily from Naples as part of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. - The painting later passed to Count Rosario Messina, a wealthy merchant in Malta from 1796 to 1875. - Rosario Messina’s daughter, Concetta Messina, inherited the work and married Harman Grisewood in 1875. - Their grandson, Harman Grisewood (1906-97), was a BBC figure and founder of The Third Programme. - Daniel Hunt, owner of Sloane Street Auctions, said the painting merges Catholic iconography and Andean culture. - Hunt said the work shows local Peruvian artists blending European iconography with Andean aesthetic. - Hunt also said the painting has never appeared for sale before because it has stayed in the same family for around 250 years or more.

Between the lines: - The family history gives the painting a provenance story that is likely to matter as much as the image itself. - The sale also reflects steady collector demand for works with clear ownership records, strong religious subject matter and colonial-era cross-cultural significance. - The estimate suggests Sloane Street Auctions is positioning the piece as an accessible but notable work rather than a top-tier trophy lot.

What's next: - The painting will be offered at auction on July 15. - Bidding can be placed online or through the auction house. - The final price will show how much buyers value rarity, family provenance and the Cusco School attribution.

The bottom line: - A long-hidden colonial-era Black Madonna and Child is heading to market for the first time, with provenance and rarity likely to drive the result.