News In Brief

'Sleeper' painting fetches $660,000 for a pensioner

An old and peeling painting auctioned off to augment the income of an elderly woman on a pension in Grand Rapids, Mich., turned out to be a masterpiece that brought in $660,000. The painting, ''Madonna and Child With St. John the Baptist ,'' by 17th-century Italian master Guido Reni, was sold here Wednesday by Christie's auction house. A Grand Rapids appraiser had estimated its value at $ 10,000.

The sale price was a record for a Reni.