A bidding war broke out at an auction for
Grégoire Veyrès, who oversaw the auction process, released a press statement saying that “The result reflects the enthusiasm this legendary gun generated all across the globe and illustrates the myth surrounding the painter,” There were 18 bids for the rusted firearm before the gum reached its final price.
In 1890, Vincent van Gogh moved to Auvers-sur-Oise in the South of France and he lived in room number five of Arthur Ravoux’s inn out there. He also started to do a painting a day on average and this is despite the fact that he was increasingly going into an unstable mental state.
There are rumors that Vincent van Gogh was actually murdered. However, most other theories as well as auction house says that “Van Gogh went to a field in the village one Sunday and shot himself in the chest. He lost consciousness and, after waking up, managed to return to the Ravoux inn, despite sustaining serious injuries. He died two days later.”
According to the auction house, there are several factors which will lead you to believe that this is the gun used in Vincent’s death. The auction house says ” it was discovered in the location where Van Gogh was shot; the 7mm caliber matches that of the bullet retrieved from Van Gogh’s body, and scientific studies suggest that the gun had been on the ground since the 1890s. It is also a low power gun, which might explain why the artist didn’t die immediately.”
