Picasso portrait given for science funding

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SYDNEY, May 2 (UPI) -- An anonymous donor has given a Picasso painting worth millions to an Australian university to sell for funds for scientific research, school officials said.

The University of Sydney has been given Picasso's painting entitled "Jeune Fille Endormie (Young Girl Asleep)," a 1935 portrait of Picasso's young French lover Marie-Therese Walter, the BBC reported last week.

The donor, based in the United States, stipulated funds from its June auction in London -- where it is expected to bring between $15 million and $20 million -- must be used to fund research efforts in scientific fields.

The donor, requesting anonymity, flew to Sydney and presented the painting to the university personally last year, university vice-chancellor Michael Spence said in a statement.

Part of the proceeds realized would be used to fund research into diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease, Spence said.

Another Picasso portrait of Marie-Therese Walter, titled "Nude, Green Leaves and Bust, sold for $106.5 million in New York last year, the BBC reported.