VIENNA.- A rare and uniquely compelling work by Artemisia Gentileschi, Mary Magdalen (Fragment), was sold for €837,500 (nearly US$1,000,000) at Dorotheum on Tuesday evening, 28th April 2026. The price far-exceeded the pre-sale estimate, and the spirited bidding battle was followed by sustained applause.

The important, yet fragmented, painting attracted international attention even in the run-up to Dorotheum’s Old Master Paintings sale. This magnificent example of one of Artemisia’s most iconic subjects, is arrestingly unique thanks to the striking void at its centre – the head and shoulders have been cut out of the painting. The damage is believed to have occurred during the chaotic upheavals of the post war period. This lends the work a powerfully enigmatic character which falls between its art historical significance and its robust survival against the odds.

Artemisia Gentileschi (1593–1654) is considered one of the most significant painters of her time. This work, dated c.1615-18, was made during Artemisia’s Florentine period, when she developed some of her most innovative interpretations of female devotional subjects. It is closely related to the Mary Magdalen in the Palazzo Pitti in Florence and is thought to predate that work. Artemisia’s portraits of female figures, often drawn from mythological or biblical traditions, reveal an extraordinary sense of psychological depth and inner strength.

This exceptional result reaffirms the strength of the art market for works by Artemisia Gentileschi and emphasises her remarkable position in her art historical context.

Commenting on the result, Dorotheum’s Old Master Paintings specialist, Mark MacDonnell, emphasises the enduring, but also contemporary character of this painting saying, “The paradox between the power of the image itself and the dramatic story of loss that this enigmatic Mary Magdalen embodies, evokes an immediate reaction – it is almost as if the damage sustained by the picture has transformed this hugely significant Old Master Painting into a contemporary work of art. It can be interpreted as survival against all odds and resonates with the artist’s own extraordinary life story”.