Knoedler had represented the artist for 18 years, but after a fall show of his work, his widow, Phyllis, asked that the unsold works be returned to her.

"It's the most intelligent market I've seen in years," Leslie Waddington, a London dealer, said about the large number of unsold works.

Both Sotheby's and Christie's say the number of unsold works next week should be lower than at the sales held last May and November.

His unsold works were auctioned by Christies on 21 February 1884.

Helen Farr Sloan, who became a noted philanthropist in her later years, oversaw the distribution of his unsold works to major museums throughout the country.

Ms. Mitchell-Innes said that she, too, was talking to possible buyers, but that so far none of the 10 unsold works at Sotheby's had been purchased.

Mr. Hart, a well-known picture dealer, offered to purchase all the unsold works which the Foggos had by them.

Nor did I tell him that this brother of mine had a hut overflowing with his unsold works of art.

He said many accountants were interpreting a new capitalization change to mean artists must estimate what it cost them to produce all their unsold works of art, including overhead.

Despite this, Georgetti kept on painting, giving his unsold works to his friends and family.