RIO DE JANEIRO—A fire in Rio de Janeiro has gutted an apartment that housed what experts say is one of the largest and best private art collections in Brazil.

The fire hit the home of collector and gallery owner Jean Boghici.

He tells the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper that the fire did spare many of the more than 100 pieces kept in his Copacabana home. He didn't provide exact details.

But Boghici confirmed that among the pieces destroyed was the 1925 painting "Samba" by Brazilian artist Di Cavalcanti, considered one of the painter's best works. Also gone is the painting "Floresta" by another Brazilian artist, Alberto Guignard.

Fire officials are investigating the cause of the blaze.