Spurtle very much likes this painted scene, with its promise of proper wintery weather and a functioning tram system. Close your eyes a little, and it could almost be Princes Street at the junction with Lothian Road.
In fact the oil depicts 'Notre Dame by Night' and is the work of French artist Édouard Henri Leon Cortès (1882–1969).
It is one of 197 lots coming up for sale in Lyon & Turnbull's Sale of Fine Paintings at Broughton Place on 29 November (5.00pm), and is estimated to fetch between £15,000 and £18,000. Some wonderful Scottish works are also worth looking at towards the end of the online auction list.
Another (and slightly more affordable) favourite here is 'Punch Looking for Master', an affectionate but unsentimental study of hairy patience in coloured chalk by the British artist Cecil Aldin (1870–1935).
Although no retriever, he is expected to fetch between £600 and £900.
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[Both images courtesy of Lyon & Turnbull, 33 Broughton Place.]