A Tom Thomson painting bought at a garage sale in east Vancouver sold for $126,500 at a Maynard’s auction of Canadian art Wednesday night.

There was no provenance behind the painting, which led some people to question whether it was by the legendary Canadian painter, who produced only a few hundred works before he drowned in 1917 at the age of 39.

But a few bidders were undetered by its mysterious past, starting off the bidding at $50,000 and going up in increments of $10,000 and then $5,000 before the final hammer price of $110,000. With Maynard’s 15 percent commission, that makes the final price $126,500.

The painting is said to have been purchased along with a watercolour by Frederick Varley for $100. The Varley brought a hammer price of $6500, or $7475 after commission. Which means the $100 investment gave a return of $133,975.

Maynard’s had the painting authenticated by Thomson experts before putting it up for auction, though it declined to name which experts. It depicts a hilly shoreline along a lake, topped by a swirling mass of blue/ pink/ purple/ white clouds.

The painting had been estimated at $150,000 to $250,000. Auctioneer Barry Scott clearly thought the painting went for a bargain price. Working hard to get bidders off their hands, at one point he said “it should be three times this.”