Ten lawsuits erupted from the scandal over $63 million in fake artworks sold through New York's once venerable Knoedler & Company gallery.

Over the course of 15 years, some 30 works were passed off to clients as by the hands of modern masters---from Jackson Pollock to Mark Rothko. Now, the first case to make it to trial began on Monday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.

Art world observers will finally get a chance to hear the story from testimony by gallery staff, including former director Ann Freedman, and possibly what they knew about those prime examples of Abstract Expressionists that mysteriously appeared from private collections through another dealer, Glafira Rosales. Provenance on the artworks was "secret."

At the heart of the trial will be Freedman's testimony, and the eprets that she cited as backing her up. Freedman has denied knowing that the artworks were done by a Chinese immigrant in Queens, who has since fled to China. Rosales pleaded guilty to numerous charges in 2013.

The buyer of the fake Rothko, called "Untitled, 1956," was the family of Domenico De Sole, the Sotheby's chairman. They are seeking $25 million in damages from Freedman, Knoedler and the holding company of the gallery. The family paid $8.3 million for their fake Rothko, a red and black rectangular work.