A CONSTABLE painting bought for just £3,500 is expected to fetch £2million at auction next week.

The painting is thought to be one of John Constable’s preparatory works for the Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows, which hangs at the Tate in London.

After the preparatory sketch was sold and restored in 2013, the East Bergholt painter’s work was discovered underneath.

The artwork is due to be auctioned by Sotheby’s in New York on January 29.