One of the paintings by artist Vincent Van Gogh of Paris street has gone on public display for the very first time. The painting spent over 100 years behind closed doors.

The painting is called ‘A Street Scene In Montmartre’. It was owned by a French family for most of the years since it was painted back in 1887.

Sotheby’s has put an estimation on the painting saying that it could fetch up to eight million Euros (£6.9m) during its auction set to happen next month.

Van Gogh expert Martin Bailey told BBC News that this is ‘the first time we are able to see it properly’.

There have been several reproductions made in the past and most of them were in black and white. Mr. Bailey also said that ‘What is exciting is that it is a Van Gogh painting which has been hidden away ever since it came off the artist’s easel’. He also added saying, ‘It has always been in private collections, so only the owners and their friends knew it. It is an interesting picture because it is a transitional work between Van Gogh’s Dutch years when he painted in dark, earthy colors, and the exuberant works that he did in Provence. It was in Paris that he discovered the Impressionists, and this led him to explore color.’

The painting has created quite a stir among artists and Van Gogh enthusiasts. The painting is part of one of Van Gogh’s series of works from the time he was lodging with his brother Theo between the years of 1886 and 1887. The address of the place was only a short distance from the street that is depicted in ‘A Street Scene In Montmartre’.

The estimation of the painting is being said to be somewhere between five and eight million Euros. This also goes on to prove that Van Gogh’s Paris paintings do not fetch the mega amounts of his Provence paintings. This comment was delivered by Mr. Bailey who also writes blogs on the artist for The Art Newspaper. He says, ‘But until the hammer goes down, one obviously never knows what will happen at an auction. There is now a great deal of interest in Van Gogh in the Far East, so the Van Gogh market is truly global.’

The painting will be displayed at Sotheby’s auction houses in Paris, Amsterdam, and Hong Kong ahead of its sale on 25 March.

Sotheby’s said that “The appearance on the market of a work of this caliber, and from such an iconic series, is undoubtedly a major event.”

Montmartre was still semi-rural when the scene was painted by Vincent van Gogh. A windmill features prominently behind some perambulating locals. The famous Sacré-Cœur church that now dominates the area was under construction at the time of the painting.

Van Gogh left Paris for the south of France in 1888. He died near Paris in July 1890.