US$450 million paid for Da Vinci painting of Jesus at New York auction, smashing art sales records
Gasps punctuate the protracted bidding for Salvator Mundi, the only Da Vinci still in private hands, with bids rising US$20 million at a time as two would-be buyers duel over the phone for possession of the work
A painting of Jesus by Leonardo da Vinci became by far the most expensive piece of art ever sold at auction on Wednesday when it was knocked down for US$450 million at Christie’s in New York.
Frequent gasps were heard in the sale room as Jussi Pylkkanen, Christie’s global president, drew out aggressive bids from the remaining two phone bidders after the price passed the US$200 million mark.
On several occasions, the final bids came in at US$20 million and US$30 million increments.
Eventually, Alexander Rotter, co-chairman of the Post-war and Contemporary Art department in New York, made the final US$400 million bid from a client, who will be paying US$450,312,500, including fees. The buyer’s identity was not disclosed.
The price was more than twice the old record for any work of art, set by Picasso’s Les Femmes D’Alger, which sold for US$179.4 million in May 2015.
