$12 drawing sold in Pennsylvania could be an original Renoir piece

MONTGOMERY CO., Pa. (WPVI) -- A Pennsylvania woman appears to have purchased an original Renoir work, dating back to the 1800s, for a tiny fraction of what it may be worth.

That drawing now has the attention of a prestigious institute looking to certify its authenticity.

Heidi Markow, owner of Salvage Goods Antiques in Easton, says she recently saw the drawing at an auction in Montgomery County.

She wasn't sure why, but she knew she had to have it.

"I didn't pick it up. I didn't turn it around. I basically looked at it and I thought, 'I just want that piece,'" Markow said.

She, and her business partners, walked away with the piece for $12.

Heidi, who is a certified art appraiser, says it didn't take long before she realized this drawing of a nude woman was special.

It has antique framing, a faint signature, and a stamp on the back signifying it was brought to the United States by a high-end importer and sold to a prominent collector.

Markwo concluded this was the work of the legendary French impressionist Pierr-Auguste Renoir.

But just to be certain, she called in a fellow art appraiser to make sure she wasn't getting ahead of herself.

"He looked it over and said he agrees with me. So, he said, congratulations," she says.

Heidi has since received an invitation for examination by the prestigious Wildenstein Plattner Institute, or WPI.

If the institute gives it a thumbs up it will, in effect, authenticate the drawing as an original Renoir.

Marcow says the question she struggles with now is what to do with this masterpiece if the WPI includes it in their digital catalog.

"I think, after the Wildenstein Plattner Institute does its inspection, I think it'll just go back into the safe for a little while and have a little bit of downtime to decide what we would want to do," said Markow.

The lingering question is: if it is in fact a Renoir, how did it end up at auction in Montgomery County?

At this point, no one seems to know the answer.

Meanwhile, the WPI is scheduled to inspect the piece early next month.

Once again, Markow says she isn't sure if she will sell the masterpiece if it is authenticated, but if she does it could sell for upwards of $1 million... maybe more.