March 27 (UPI) -- A Pennsylvania woman bought a drawing for $12 at a collector's auction and she later determined it might be a far more valuable work by French impressionist Pierre-Auguste Renoir.
Heidi Markow, owner of Salvage Goods Antiques in Easton, Pa., said she spotted the drawing while attending a collector's auction in Montgomery County to find pieces for her store.
"I didn't know what it was, I just knew that I wanted it," Markow told ABC News. "This piece just stood out to me as something special."
She ended up buying the piece for just $12.
"There were paintings that were going for $1,000, $2,000, $3,000 as they moved down the line," she told NBC10 Philadelphia. "And this was just sitting there."
Markow said it wasn't until she got home that she spotted a faint signature that indicated to her that it might be the work of Renoir. She said it appears to be a portrait of the artist's wife, Aline Charigot.
Markow said an experienced art appraiser recommended to her by Sotheby's agreed it appeared to be a Renoir, and the drawing will now be examined by the nonprofit Wildenstein Plattner Institute to determine whether it is authentic.
"It's rigorous, they're pretty tough with their examination. I'm cautiously optimistic," Markow said.
She said she plans to sell the drawing if it is authenticated as a Renoir.
"It can go for six figures, seven figures, I don't know," Markow said.
