Developers of a property on Dunfermline High Street have made an unexpected discovery while refurbishing the listed building into an 18 bedroom hotel.
Nikala Thomson plans to open the new hotel at the end of next month.
This is a venture backed by local businessman, Nihat Oymak, who owns the Amorist Bistro Bar underneath the hotel.
Fifteen original paintings, impressively framed, and mainly depicting portraiture, have been found in one of the rooms in the building.
The find is made all the more intriguing by the fact that some of the paintings are not signed. Nikala contacted locally based Bowler & Binnie Auctioneers in Dunfermline who, over the past few weeks, have painstakingly cleaned, catalogued, and valued the artwork.
The auctioneers have identified that the paintings all date from the early twentieth century. The auction company’s artwork experts have identified at least some of the artists, and the subjects shown in the paintings. All are works in oil, except for one watercolour.
One work is by Scottish portrait painter Sir Daniel MacNee, RSA, (1806-1882) whose portrait of a mystery gentleman is valued up to £220. Another 19th and 20th century artist, Mary E Jellicoe, painted “Portrait of Ann, Wife of Adrian Manasseh,” a piece valued at between £150-£200.
A husband and wife, Sarah King Hooper, and her husband Robert King Turner, are depicted in separate portraits, both marked with the family coat of arms.
Other portrait subjects include Major General Townend Arrmburg De Moleyns (b.1838), is a descendant of the family of Lord Ventry. Two paintings have connections to Scottish philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie, and have now been gifted to the Carnegie Trust. The rest of the collection, thirteen paintings in total, will go to auction this week.
Nikala said: “These paintings are a very unexpected, but fascinating, discovery.
“Our thanks go to the team at Bowler & Binnie who have put a great deal of care and attention into sorting and cataloguing the collection, bringing in additional consultants to advise on the potential values.
“They are all nicely framed, with most of the frames still in good order, but needless to say after years of being undiscovered, were extremely dusty and dirty, so the experts here had to clean them up as much as they could, revealing the bright green dress. for example, in the portrait of Ann Manasseh.
“We can but conclude that a person perhaps living in the building in the past was an art collector, but it is all a bit of a mystery. It’s incredible that they were not discovered before now.”
Nikala explained that the furthest back anyone involved in the new hotel had researched, in terms of the building’s history, was that the lower floor, currently Amorist Bistro Bar & formerly La Menta, was used as a Council office, and before that, possibly, a Bank.
She said: “We really don’t know a great deal about the upper floors. Perhaps at some stage the whole place was the private residence of a well to do family.
“We would certainly appeal to any local historians in Dunfermline to get in touch, if they are familiar with this building, as well as any local art experts. It’s nice that two of the paintings showed Andrew Carnegie, as that is a direct connection with Dunfermline.”
Nikala questioned whether any local people that used to work in the building would know anything about what the upper floors were used for.
“If anyone’s grandparents, or even great grandparents, remember it from the past, please get let us know.
“It’s a reminder that history is all around us. Discovering the paintings has made us even more excited to launch this hotel, as we have breathed new life into the building, giving it a fantastic new use.”
Bowler & Binnie owner, J’aime Bowler, said: “This is a really interesting, and highly saleable, collection. The portraits are all well executed, in terms of proportion, with attractive framing, which all bodes well for their potential sale.
“Anything military is particularly collectible at the moment, and as such, the portrait of Major General Townend Armburg De Moleyns is expected to do well, as are the husband and wife portraits of Sarah and Robert King Turner, as they include family crests which are quite rare to find.
“All and all, we are absolutely delighted to have been asked to auction this collection, and wish the new Amorist Hotel well when it opens.”
