Topless Bea Arthur portrait fetches USD 1.9 million at auction

New York: A topless portrait of the late actress Beatrice Arthur has gone under the hammer at Christie`s auction house here, fetching USD 1.9 million. The portrait, titled `Bea Arthur Naked`, was created by artist John Currin and was sold for the huge amount at Christie`s auction of post-war and contemporary art, reported Huffington Post. The final offering met its estimates of receiving between USD 1.8 million and USD 2.5 million. The buyer has remained anonymous. Painted with oils in 1991, the portrait shows the late actress nude from the waist up, but the image was in fact created from a photograph of her fully clothes. Arthur passed away aged 89 in 2009 after a long battle with cancer. The actress made a name for herself in hit TV shows such as `Maude` and `The Golden Girls` alongside Betty White during the 1970s and 80s. Arthur earned the title of second most nominations for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, with 9 nods throughout her career, and picked up several accolades. PTI