Jobless man earns a fortune with 250,000 pounds lost Renaissance art

London, March 23 : A 21-year-old antiques fan has stumbled on a Renaissance painting, which could be worth 250,000 pounds.

Mark Lawrence, who's unemployed, found the picture of St Jerome at a shop in Windsor and bought it for 350 pounds.

However, when he took it to be identified at his local museum he was advised to go to experts at the National Gallery who confirmed it had been incorrectly labeled and is worth 250,000 pounds.

At first, the painter appeared to be the work of Italian painter Palma Vecchio but on closer inspection it was revealed to be a so-called masterpiece by his nephew Palma Giovane called St Jerome in the Wilderness.

Despite the value, Mark said that he is planning to keep it.

"I just thought it was beautiful. And while it's worth a lot, I'm mad enough to keep it," the Mirror quoted him, as saying.

ANI