Hans Baldung Grien Portrait Declared National Treasure, Barred from Leaving France
3March 25, 2026
The auction of a newly-discovered Renaissance portrait, attributed to German master Hans Baldung Grien in January, has been paused following the work being declared a French National Treasure. The last-minute intervention by the French culture ministry means that the work, which was expected to be sold by the auction house Beaussant Lefèvre on March 23, will now be barred from leaving the country for thirty months.Though not widely recognized by name, Baldung was one of the most prominent German altarpiece-makers of the sixteenth century; it’s likely that he was trained by Dürer, and his work belongs in the continuum of German Renaissance master Grünewald’s style.“Given the strong interest expressed by the French Ministry of Culture in its acquisition, and despite the interest shown by several institutions and international collectors, the sellers wish to take the necessary time to pursue negotiations in a private context,” Beaussant Lefèvre auctioneer Arthur De Moras said, per Artnet.The squabbled-over Baldung work, which is the size of a postcard, was projected to sell for around $3.5 million before the sale’s cancellation. The drawing from 1517, entitled Portrait of Susanna Pfeffinger (Sélestat 1465 – Strasbourg 1538), wife of Friedrich Prechter, shown bust-length, three-quarter view facing left, was done in silverpoint and captures a modest Strasbourg woman. The portrait remained in Pfeffinger’s family’s collection for more than 500 years. Christof Metzger, chief curator of graphic arts at the Albertina in Vienna, told the Art Newspaper that the drawing was “more-or-less a once in a lifetime discovery” due to the extreme rarity of Baldung drawings—only 250 or so were understood to exist, and the last auction of a Baldung work took place in 2007 when a drawing sold for $3.7 million at Christie’s. Related Lost Page From Archimedes Palimpsest Reappears In French Museum After Two Years Of Decline, Global Art Market Grew 4 Percent in 2025