Long Island Man Discovers Artworks Worth $30 Million in Basement

How’s this for winning the lottery without buying a ticket?  Thomas Schultz, a Long Island man, purchased a house in 2007.  There was a lot of “junk” heaped up in the garage, which the family who owned the home previously told him to just throw away—including more than 70,000 pieces of art.  “I didn’t want to be the person responsible for throwing a man’s life’s work into a dumpster,” explained Schultz.  It turned out that decision has paid off handsomely, because on doing further research, he discovered the works are worth something in neighborhood of $30 million combined. 

The real kicker here?  The name of the artist, Arthur Pinajian, was the same name of the family who sold Schultz the home and recommended he throw away the paintings.  How’s that for not getting recognition from the people closest to you?  Schultz has already sold some of the pieces for half a million dollars, and has placed a number of other paintings from the collection on exhibit in the Fuller Building in Manhattan (pictured on left).  It has been the work of years to get the paintings out of the dust and into the limelight.  “It was important that this collection and this artist gets the recognition that he deserves,” said Schultz.  “It is an exciting journey to go from what we call the exhumation of the collection – from the dirt floor of the garage, to exhibition.”

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