Nothing beats renovating the house to discover old things. For Luke Budworth, a 29yearold man from North Yorkshire, England, the surprise was bigger and older than he could have imagined. While renovating the kitchen, he discovered paintings from 400 years ago. Hidden behind cabinets, the paintings were found by professionals who dismantled the kitchen furniture.
Iconic painting accidentally found
The rarities were found next to the chimney and are estimated to have been made in 1660. Local government agency Historic England is investigating the case as they suspect the piece is of “national importance”.
The young man, who is a doctor and researcher at the University of Leeds, said it was the furniture fitters who found the parts in the kitchen.
Budworth said he was suspicious of an odd piece on the wall, but he never paid much attention to it and could never have guessed it was a painting.
Photo: Reproduction / SWNS.
The apartment owner explained: “When they found it, I knew there was a parallel piece of wood on the other side of the chimney that could have the same thing. Never thought of it before, thought it was pipes behind it. We always knew there was an odd piece in the wall.”
Upon discovering the painting, he was excited and began removing whatever was covering the painting. He thought it was Victorianera wallpaper, but he recognized immediately that it was a design that had been applied directly to the wall.
Photo: Reproduction / SWNS.
Experts say the painting references a 1635 book titled Emblems by Francis Quarles. The young man credited with finding the 400yearold painting in his home is hoping for financial support to preserve the work and research more about the painting.