Riotous painting sells for £3.7m

The painting depicts a bawdy, riotous feast day

Pieter Brueghel's colourful masterpiece The Kermesse of St George has been sold for £3.7 million at a sale in London.

The 17th century Flemish artist's work, which has not been seen in public for 70 years, sold to an anonymous buyer.

The detailed painting depicts a riotous village fair, and includes scenes of fighting, urinating and vomiting.

"All human life is in this work," said Sotheby's Old Masters expert George Gordon. "This is the pinnacle of Brueghel's works," he added.

The painting, which has been in the hands of a Belgian family since 1930, is described by the auction house as the finest Brueghel still in private hands.

Produced in 1628, it shows villagers in various states of inebriation during celebrations for the feast of St George, and involves numerous subjects.

The Antwerp-based artist was known as "Hell Brueghel" because of his fascination with the grotesque, and became master of the guild in 1585 at the age of just 21.

Dancing merrily

Three versions of The Kermasse of St George are known to exist, and the one which sold at auction is considered to be the most accomplished.

The artist's father - Pieter Brueghel The Elder - was also a renowned painter.

Brueghel the Younger's studio was also known for producing copies of his father's works, a practice carried on by his own son.

The painting also shows a couple kissing and a group of people dancing merrily, while in the background priests and worshippers are filing solemnly into church.