On Dec. 8, the Rembrandt painting "Portrait of a Man with Arms Akimbo" sold at the Christie's International auction house in London for 20.2 million pounds ($32.9 million).This was a record for a Rembrandt, which even in a recessed economy has shown no signs of decreasing in value. That would be specifically Rembrandt, as other artists haven't been as lucky.
The painting, created in 1658, hasn't been seen in public for almost 40 years.
But that may be about to change.
The purchaser (who was the only bidder) bid anonymously via telephone, and as there are only a handful of high-end art collectors, the speculation was that it was a casino mogul who has a penchant for great works of art.
Yesterday, The New York Times revealed that the secret buyer is Steve Wynn, owner of Wynn Las Vegas and Encore Las Vegas.
Wynn has been known to adorn his casinos with his art collection, and was recently in art news for accidentally putting his elbow through Picasso's "Le Reve."
