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The post Most Expensive Auction Items by Sarah Edwards appeared first on Benzinga. Visit Benzinga to get more great content like this.
A long-held lesson of economics is that the value of an item is what someone is willing to pay for it. Still, when it comes to auctions, that concept only partially explains the astronomical prices paid for the most expensive auction items ever.
“Auction fever” can happen when adrenaline-fueled excitement overrides rational judgment. Whether caught in the moment or focused on strategy, bidders have paid more than $100 million for a painting to nearly $1 billion for an art collection.
If you’ve ever wondered about the highest price tags hung on auctioned items, here’s a list of the top 10 most expensive collectibles bought at auction.
Quick Look: Most Expensive Auction Items
- The Macklowe Collection
- “Salvator Mundi” by Leonardo da Vinci
- “Interchange” by Willem de Kooning
- “The Card Players” by Paul Cezanne
- “Shot Sage Blue Marilyn” by Andy Warhol
- “Les Femmes d’Alger” (Version O) by Pablo Picasso
- 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe
- “Reclining Nude” by Amedeo Modigliani
- “Les Poseuses, Ensemble” (Petite Version) by Georges Seurat
- “Three Studies of Lucian Freud” by Francis Bacon
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From Auction to Investment: The Antiques Commanding Record-Breaking Prices
The list of the most expensive auction items is mostly made up of works of art, including an entire single collection of famous paintings and sculptures. Here are the top 10 record-breaking auction sales.
1. The Macklowe Collection
This collection from real estate magnate Harry Macklowe and his former wife Linda Macklowe included artworks by some of the most famous contemporary artists of all time: Andy Warhol’s “Self Portrait” and “Blue Airmail Stamps,” “Number 17” from Jackson Pollock, Jeff Koons’s sculpture “Popples” and “Untitled” by Mark Rothko. Bidders at Christie’s in New York in November 2021 and May 2022 paid a total of $922 million.
2. “Salvator Mundi” by Leonardo da Vinci
Lost until 2005 and heavily restored, Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci’s depiction of Jesus Christ stands as the most expensive single painting sold at auction. The artwork that dates back to around 1500 sold at Christie’s in New York in 2017 for $450.3 million.
3. “Interchange” by Willem de Kooning
Dutch-American painter Willem de Kooning is credited with starting the modern art movement in the U.S.. “Interchange,” a 1955 work of abstract expressionism, is considered his best piece, exhibiting his loose brushwork while expressing energy and the artist’s inner struggle. The David Geffen Foundation sold the painting to Kenneth C. Griffin for $300 million in 2015.
4. “The Card Players” by Paul Cezanne
Before being supplanted by da Vinci and de Kooning, French impressionist Paul Cezanne’s “The Card Players” from the early 1890s was the highest-selling painting at auction, going to the Royal Family of Qatar in 2011 for $259 million.
5. “Shot Sage Blue Marilyn” by Andy Warhol
In 1964, pop art icon Andy Warhol captured Marilyn Monroe on canvas five times. The acrylic and silkscreen work on linen is considered “the modern Mona Lisa.” The painting sold to art dealer Larry Gagosian in May 2022 at Christie’s in New York for $195 million.
6. “Les Femmes d’Alger” (Version O) by Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso created “Les Femmes d’Alger (Version ‘O’)” as part of a series of paintings honoring his friend and rival Henri Matissse. The painting, dated 1955, was acquired from a renowned European collection. In May 2015, Picasso’s tribute to his fellow artist sold at Christie’s for $179.4 million.
7. 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe
Just one of two produced, the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe sat in the corporate collection of the German automaker for 60 years before reaching the auction block in May 2022.
The heir-apparent to Mercedes-Benz’s W196, a Formula One champion car in 1954, never made it to the racetrack because Mercedes backed away from racing after an errant car killed 80 spectators at the 1955 Le Mans.
The other 300 SLR remains in Mercedes-Benz’s museum in Stuttgart, Germany. The one sold by Sotheby’s went to a private investor for $143 million.
8. “Reclining Nude” by Amedeo Modigliani
Amedeo Modigliani painted a series of nudes (“Nu Couché,” as originally titled in his native language) between 1917 and 1918 on commission from Leopold Zborowski, a friend he met in 1916. Christie’s in New York sold the oil on canvas to a Chinese billionaire investor, Liu Yiqian, for $170.4 million in November 2015.
9. “Les Poseuses, Ensemble” (Petite Version) by Georges Seurat
Also known as “The Three Models,” “Les Poseuses, Ensemble,” the 1888 painting is coveted because of Georges Seurat’s pointillist technique and seeming political statement with the use of the nude female body in the late 19th century. The work from the Paul G. Allen Collection sold at Christie’s for $149.2 million in November 2022.
10. “Three Studies of Lucian Freud”
Irish-born Francis Bacon painted the 1969 portrait of his friend and fellow painter, Lucian Freud, as a triptych featuring three distinct panels. The two artists painted each other, with Freud first sitting for Bacon in 1951. Bacon’s distorted style shows Freud sitting on a cane-bottomed wooden chair in a cage. The triptych sold for $142.4 million in November 2013.
Factors Influencing Auction Prices
In an auction, several factors can influence the price paid for an item like an art masterpiece. Rarity, condition and provenance, or the history of ownership, are the three most common factors bidders may consider. However, final auction prices also arise from typical market influences, such as demand and competition.
Layered on top of all of that are psychological and social pressures, such as “fear of missing out,” aka FOMO, and “social proof,” which is a belief in the value of an item based on others bidding up the price. These pressures can raise the temperature on “auction fever.”
Being successful at auction means mastering the mix of rationality, social dynamics and emotions. Understanding all of these factors can be key to the success of sellers and bidders.
Learn From the High Bids of the Most Expensive Auction Items
Whether you’re a collector or an investor, you may be able to find or sell that signature piece at auction, online at eBay or Etsy or in person at Christie’s or Sotheby’s. The most expensive items to go at auctions are fine art. However, you can buy or sell anything from collectibles to general merchandise with the right strategy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What sells most in an auction?
Items that sell well at auction are those in high demand, such as luxury collectibles. Designer handbags and high-end watches are status symbols that draw attention and high prices.
What is the most expensive artifact ever sold?
To date, the most expensive artifact ever sold was a painting, Leonardo da Vinci’s depiction of Jesus Christ, “Salvator Mundi,” which sold for $450.3 million. An even ore famous painting that resides in a museum and isn’t for sale is da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa,” which is considered priceless but has an estimated value of $860 million based on insurance.
What is the most expensive thing in the world?
According to Guinness World Records, the most expensive thing ever made is out of this world, literally. The International Space Station, at a cost of $150 billion to build, is the most expensive object created. The most expensive substance on earth is antimatter, with an estimated value of $62.5 trillion per gram.
The post Most Expensive Auction Items by Sarah Edwards appeared first on Benzinga. Visit Benzinga to get more great content like this.
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