DUBAI: A rare painting of an Omani man by South African artist Irma Stern was auctioned for $1.38 million dollars, the Omani embassy in South Africa announced. In a tweet, the Oman embassy in Cape Town revealed the painting was sold in an auction after a “fierce bidding” on March 18, where the value of the painting reached up to African Rand 12,070,000. The painting was sold to an unnamed South African buyer. The artwork, titled “An Arab Man,” was painted in Zanzibar in 1985 by Stern, who drew inspiration from her visit in the island in 1939 and 1945. “The painting dates back to the reign of Sultan Khalifa bin Harib bin Thwaini Al-Said,” the embassy said. Made with oil on canvass, the painting shows an Omani man dressed in traditional garments.