Two pieces of art worth nearly R260 000 - purchased by the Patrice Motsepe Foundation - were bought "by chance" at a South African Revenue Services auction for R2 500 last week.

Durbanite Justin Titus was the lucky buyer, having bought the paintings on a whim without even seeing them.

Why and how the artworks landed up at a Sars auction remains a mystery, with Motsepe Foundation officials having gone to ground.

Now the savvy-minded Titus looks set to turn a massive profit on the paintings, even approaching the Foundation to see whether they would like to be "reunited" with the auctioned items.

But for now, a piece titled Good Days by Rashid Johnson and another by Carrie Mae Weems from her Roaming series have a temporary home in Durban.

Johnson is an African-American socio-political photographer who produces conceptual post-black art, while Weems is an artist best known for her photography.