NPR || A portrait of Christ by Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci has shattered all previous records for artworks sold at auction or privately, fetching a whopping $450.3 million on Wednesday at Christie’s in New York.
“Salvator Mundi is a painting of the most iconic figure in the world by the most important artist of all time,” said Loic Gouzer, co-chairman of postwar and contemporary art at Christie’s, was quoted by The Associated Press as saying. “The opportunity to bring this masterpiece to the market is an honor that comes around once in a lifetime.”
It was recorded in the collection of King Charles I of England in 1649 but was auctioned to the Duke of Buckingham in 1763. It then disappeared until 1900, over which time it was assumed to have been lost or destroyed.
When it finally resurfaced, it was damaged from restoration attempts and was purchased by British collector Sir Frederick Cook. At the time, it wasn’t seen as an authentic da Vinci but instead attributed to one of his disciples.
In 2011, Salvator Mundi went on public display. At the time, the BBC wrote:
It was put on the block for Wednesday’s auction by Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev, who had purchased it for $127.5 million in a private sale in 2013.
The previous record for a painting sold at auction was set in 2015 when Pablo Picasso’s Women of Algiers (Version O)went for $179 million to an anonymous buyer. A private sale of Willem de Kooning’s Interchange, also in 2015, fetched $300 million.