£3.2m raised to keep Van Dyck painting in Britain
A fundraising campaign to keep a self-portrait of painter Sir Anthony Van Dyck in the country has raised more than £3m since its launch two months ago.
The painting, which dates back to 1640, has been in a private collection for almost 400 years but has been sold and could be shipped overseas. An export bar issued by the Government gave campaigners three months to save it. That expires in two weeks but can be extended. The National Portrait Gallery and the Art Fund said they had received around £3.2m so far including £1m from the Sainsbury family’s Monument Trust.