Two paintings by Canaletto will be offered as a single lot at Sotheby's Old Masters evening sale on December 4 with an estimate of £8m-12m ($12.9m-19.4m).
The paintings, titled Venice, A View of the Piazza San Marco Looking East towards the Basilica and the Campanile, and A View of the Grand Canal and the Rialto Bridge, were painted circa 1738-1742 - the height of Canaletto's artistic abilities.
 Venice, A View of the Piazza San Marco Looking East towards the Basilica and the Campanile |
Considered the finest view painter of his era, both then and now, Canaletto's work has been in high demand for over 300 years.
Alex Bell, joint international head and co-chairman of Sotheby's old master paintings department, commented: "Canaletto was one of the rare artists of his time to have an international reputation. He was an unrivalled source of inspiration to his peers and his works were sought after by the greatest European collectors.
"Almost three centuries later, his universal appeal endures, and today his oeuvre is appreciated by an ever growing audience.
"Asian and Russian collectors, in particular, have shown strong interest in Italian view paintings in recent sales, and we will therefore be exhibiting these exceptional Canalettos not only in Europe and the US, but also in Moscow and Hong Kong."
 A View of the Grand Canal and the Rialto Bridge |
Previous works by the artist have changed hands for large sums, with View of the Grand Canal from Palazzo Balbi to the Rialto reaching £18.6m ($30.1m) at Sotheby's London in 2005.
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