Hick's Peaceable Kingdom for Sale

"The Peaceable Kingdom with the Leopard of Serenity" by American folk artist Edward Hicks will be auctioned at Sotheby's New York on May 22, 2008.

After potential buyers at a private auction failed to meet the $10 million minimum bid, Sotheby's New York announced that The Peaceable Kingdom with the Leopard of Serenity (1846-1848), an icon of American folk art by celebrated painter Edward Hicks (1780-1849), will be offered for sale on May 22, 2008.

Owned by collector Ralph Esmerian, The Peaceable Kingdom... was on long-term loan to Manhattan's American Folk Art Museum since 2000. It's one of more than 62 versions of the same subject painted late in the career of the Bucks County, Pennsylvania artist. The powerfully spiritual work of exceptional provenance is estimated to sell for $6 million to $8 million (US).

The oil on canvas composition, populated by evenly distributed humans, a lion, sheep, a spotted leopard and other animals, describes Hicks' interpretation of the Quaker doctrine of salvation as well as the American ideals of reconciliation and peace.