oil painting

An oil painting of a Māori elder has fetched a record price at an auction on Tuesday, making it the most valuable artwork of its kind in New Zealand history.

In the opening credits of “Gladiator II,” an oil painting of Omorogbe’s unnamed fighter wafts across the screen, promising, perhaps, a new generation of gladiatrices.

And cracked it is, a fine web of fractures disrupting the once soft and seamless surface — inevitable in an oil painting on wooden panel of its ancient age.

Made for Amsterdam's Arquebusiers Guild Hall, Rembrandt van Rijn's 1642 oil painting is one of the earliest to portray a group in action.

Also on the ticket - an oil painting of King George V and a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon signed by monarchist and former Prime Minister Tony Abbott.