The current US ambassador to Denmark is probably too busy haggling over Greenland to build up much of an art collection but that was not the case for his predecessor in the 1980s.
Businessman John L Loeb, who served as ambassador for two years from 1981, is selling his collection of more than 150 works - many of which he bought while based in Copenhagen.
Phillips auction house, which will sell them in New York in May, said it was "the most important collection of Danish artwork in private hands" and is "considered to be the largest in the world outside of Danish museums".
Among the artists included are Anna Ancher and Vilhelm Hammershoi whose Courtyard Interior at Strandgade 30 from 1905 is estimated to fetch $5 million.
Loeb said he had "initially planned" to fill the ambassador's residence with American art but was "soon drawn to the quietude and beauty of 19th-century Danish paintings".
Works from the sale, which is expected to make around $12 million, will be shown in the Danish capital later this month.
