A surprise art gem has been unearthed ahead of auction, and it could fetch up to £3,000.
The watercolour, tucked away in a private Hampshire collection, only revealed its true importance when the owners brought it in for a routine valuation.
They had no clue they were sitting on a work by Edward Seago RBA, ARWS, RWS (1910 to 1974), one of Britain’s most celebrated twentieth-century painters.
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The piece is now set to go under the hammer at Woolley and Wallis in Salisbury, as reported by Need To Know.
Victor Fauvelle, Art Specialist at Woolley and Wallis, said: “When the painting was brought in, I immediately recognised the style and brushwork; however, it wasn’t until I looked closely at the signature on the painting that I could confirm that the work was indeed by the celebrated artist, Edward Seago.
“The owners of the painting had absolutely no idea that they were in the possession of such a significant work.
“Discoveries like this are exceptionally rare and exciting.
“Seago’s work has a unique ability to capture atmosphere and light, and to find one of his popular watercolours that was completely unknown and is of such high quality is extraordinary.
“This is exactly why bringing works into the specialist’s eye can be so revealing.”
Seago, born in Norwich to a coal merchant, became a master of both oils and watercolours despite being largely self-taught.
As a teenager, he won a Royal Drawing Society award and later toured with circuses across Britain and Europe, living a life as colourful as his canvases.
His work spans landscapes, seascapes, skyscapes, gardens, street scenes, and portraits, often linked with Impressionism and Post-Impressionism.
During the Second World War, and despite chronic health issues, he joined the Royal Engineers, helping develop camouflage techniques for Field Marshal Auchinleck while still painting for fellow troops.
Collectors couldn’t get enough of him in later years, and admirers included the British royal family, among them Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother and Prince Philip.
He also designed the silver St George and the Dragon mascot used on state limousines.
Seago lived in East Anglia with his partner and studio assistant, Peter Seymour, and left behind an enormous legacy of around 19,000 watercolours and 300 oil paintings when he died in London in 1974.
The newly uncovered artwork, titled Continental street scene, is a delicate pencil and watercolour study signed lower left and measuring 36.8 by 26.6 centimetres.
It carries an estimate of £2,000 to £3,000 (Lot 539) but could go far higher given the artist’s enduring popularity.
Another Seago piece, Hong Kong Street Scene, a vibrant watercolour with traces of pencil, will also go under the hammer.
Signed lower left and measuring 37 by 27 centimetres, it is estimated at £3,000 to £5,000 (Lot 540).
Both watercolours feature in Woolley and Wallis’ Modern British and 20th Century Art sale today, Thursday, December 11, 2025, celebrating the depth and vitality of British art from the last century.
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