How Samsung Founder's Family Could Pay Among World's Biggest Tax Bills

The Lees' private collection comprises about 13,000 works, including some by artists such as Andy Warhol and South Korea's Park Soo-keun, the person familiar with the appraisal process said.

When Lee Kun-hee was assembling one of the world's biggest privately owned art collections, little did he know that it would become embroiled in his family's tax woes. The trove includes a portrait of Dora Maar by Pablo Picasso, one of Claude Monet's water lilies paintings and thousands of other works that together are estimated to be worth between 2.5 trillion won and 3 trillion won ($2.2 billion and $2.7 billion), according to a person familiar with the appraisal process who asked not to be named because he isn't authorized to speak to the media. It could prove to be a key asset in paying for one of the world's largest inheritance-tax bills. The Samsung dynasty has until the end of the month to unveil how the family plans to finance the levy of at least 11 trillion won due after Lee's death in October. While South Korean law doesn't currently allow art to be used for such payments, some cultural organizations want the government to consider changing it to ensure the treasures remain in the country. "The idea of paying inheritance tax with art hasn't received much support because it was perceived as something that would only benefit the rich," said Chung Joon-mo, who co-leads the Korea Art Authentication and Appraisal Research Center and was the chief curator of Korea's National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. "But now there's growing sentiment that it would be of national interest to keep such world class works of art in the country."