Rembrandt, 'A Blind Beggar With a Boy and a Dog.' (Courtesy Christie's)

A Rembrandt chalk study of a blind vagabond has been discovered along with other drawings in a Scottish attic, much to the surprise of the unwitting homeowner who instantly contacted Christie's. From the report by The Guardian, experts at Christie's "were sure" that the drawing was a work by the 17th-century Dutch artist. It will be sold by the auction house on July 3. The work, entitled A Blind Beggar With a Boy and a Dog, is estimated to bring in $125,000.

While the drawing is not related to any of Rembrandt's paintings, it is similar to a work in the Berlin state museum.

From the story:

[Benjamin Peronnet, head of old master drawings at Christie's] said: "When we began our research, we were surprised to find an almost identical drawing of a beggar in Berlin – it usually isn't good news when you find … a similar drawing in a museum, because it can mean that the [discovery] … is only a copy."

Referring to the Berlin version, Peronnet added: "It had been published as by Rembrandt, although a few scholars had expressed doubts about it. It was clear very quickly to everybody who saw [the discovery] that this was really by Rembrandt and the drawing in Berlin was a copy."