Salvator Mundi by Leonardo da Vinci sells for record $450.3 million at Christie's

Leonardo da Vinci's Salvator Mundi sold for $450.3 million at Christie's New York on November 15, 2017, shattering the previous auction record of $300 million for Willem de Kooning's Interchange. The bidding lasted 19 minutes, closing at $400 million before fees. The painting, depicting Christ blessing with a transparent globe, was long attributed to Leonardo's workshop until 2011, when it was authenticated by scholars Pietro C. Marani, Martin Kemp, and Nicholas Penny, director of the National Gallery in London, and exhibited in 'Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan'. Carmen Brambach of the Metropolitan Museum of Art disputes full attribution, crediting most to assistant Giovanni Boltraffio. The work has a storied provenance: first recorded in the collection of King Charles I, inherited by Charles II, lost for 140 years, reappeared in 1900 as a Bernardino Luini, sold at Sotheby's in 1958 for £60, resurfaced in 2005 at a small US auction house, and was purchased in 2013 by Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev for $127 million. The buyer remains anonymous; Christie's toured the painting to Hong Kong, San Francisco, and London before the sale, suggesting Asian interest. Notable attendees included collector Uli Sigg, Dasha Zhukova, Budi Tek, Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, Eli Broad, and artist Gerhard Richter.