Exceptional 500-year-old painting of the birth of Jesus Christ discovered

A 500-year-old religious painting has been discovered in a private art collection in Guernsey.

A 500-year-old painting created in the workshop of artist Peter Kuek van Elst has been identified in a private art collection located on the island of Guernsey. The painting is set to be auctioned at Martell Meads next month, according to Heritage Aria.

Pieter Koek van Aalst, born in Brussels in 1520, worked as a painter, sculptor, architect, designer, and translator. He ran a large art workshop and had several assistants, but it is not clear whether the Nativity scene was created by him, his assistants, or a collaboration.

Jonathan Wouk, a painting specialist at Martell Meads Auctions, described the discovery of the painting as exceptional and unique, saying: "There are no signed paintings by this artist left and there is also very little documentation of his paintings."

The religious painting, which depicts the birth of Jesus Christ, has three panels. It depicts a scene of the Magi praying as they arrive at Jesus' bedside after his birth.

Jonathan Wouk, while noting that the discovered painting is very similar to other paintings attributed to him, said: "This painting is a unique painting due to its special characteristics and is not a copy or reconstruction."

The approximate value of this work of art is estimated by experts to be between 150,000 and 200,000 pounds.