Rostropovich art collection to be sold off at Sotheby's in London

A detail from Faces of Russia, by Boris Grigoriev, hailed as the most important Russian painting since the 1917 revolution. Photograph: Sotheby's

The art collection of 22 pieces, worth about twenty-six million to forty million dollars, is to be sold off September 18 and 19 at Sotheby's in London.

Yesterday Jo Vickery, the head of Sotheby's Russian department in London, said that Rostropovich and his wife bought their most significant works at a time when there was little interest in Russian art, unlike today, when Russian masterpieces routinely fetch millions. [from Guardian]