The Most Expensive Artworks Sold at Auction, From Warhol to Da Vinci

Sold for $115 million at Christie’s New York in May 2018

It was sheer luck that, in 1968, David Rockefeller was able to buy Picasso’s Rose Period stunner Young Girl with Basket of Flowers (1905). By his own written account, he won the lot by drawing the longest straw out of a felt hat, beating out other high rollers with ties to the MoMA, including his brother Nelson R. Rockefeller, CBS honcho William S. Paley, publisher John Hay Whitney, and Andre Meyer. He paid less than $1 million for the picture, which was once owned by Gertrude Stein, the modernist writer who bought it in Paris the year it was painted.

After David and Peggy Rockefeller passed away, Christie’s secured the estate, and Young Girl with Basket of Flowers became the star lot of what would become the most talked-about single-owner sale in history (until the Paul Allen sale a few years later). When the Picasso work hit the block, a battle royale didn’t ensue—auctioneer and then-global president of Christie’s Jussi Pylkkänen fielded just a handful of bids to bring the picture from its $90 million estimate to its final hammer price of $102 million.

The following day at the Wall Street Journal’s “Future of Everything” festival in New York, power dealer Larry Gagosian sat down with Edward Dolman, then the CEO of Phillips, to jaw about the market and the previous night’s sale, where Gagosian lost a bidding war over a late era de Kooning painting. “Why no applause after such a big sale,” market reporter Kelly Crow asked. Dolman responded: “Christie’s obviously found a guarantor.”

Sold for $117 million at Christie’s New York in November 2022

Van Gogh’s Orchard with Cypresses (1888) was the first picture—and not the last, either—that broke the $100 million dollar ceiling during the Paul Allen sale at Christie’s, just as the art market was peeking its head out of a Covid-induced slumber. (Interest rates hibernate for another couple of years, making big-ticket purchases a little easier on the portfolio.)

The painting, which depicts the blossoming cherry orchards that surrounded Van Gogh’s Arles residence, is deceptively cool, even though it was painted in the spring. It’s one of 14 pictures that helped solidify Van Gogh’s post-Paris style, with heavy impasto, intense colors, and wild expressionism. 

Orchard with Cypresses was just one of five lots that sold for more than $100 million in November 2022, a rarity in any season. (The other four works appear below, but more on those pieces later.) At the time, appraiser David Shapiro described the number of single lots to pass the $100 million mark as “unprecedented.”

The van Gogh sale was part of an extraordinary auction of Paul Allen’s collection, which amassed a record-breaking $1.5 billion in a single evening—making it the most valuable single-owner sale in auction history. Every lot was sold, with many exceeding their high estimates, reinforcing the resilience of the high-end art market despite economic uncertainties.

Sold for $119.9 million at Sotheby’s New York in May 2012

When it sold for $107 million at Sotheby’s New York, Munch’s pastel The Scream (1895), one of the four versions—two painted and two in pastel—that he made of the same subject, became the most expensive work ever to be sold at a public auction, stealing the trophy from Picasso’s 1932 Nude, Green Leaves and Bust, which sold at Christie’s in 2010 for $106.5 million.

At the time, it was the only version of The Scream still in private hands; its seller was Petter Olsen, a Norwegian businessman whose father, Thomas, was Munch’s friend and patron. The picture, which opened at $40 million, sparked a 12-minute bidding war, with wide-eyed potential buyers both in the salesroom and on the phones. According to the Wall Street Journal, its buyer was investor Leon Black, a trustee at the Museum of Modern Art, where The Scream later went on view.

After the sale Olsen, described by Art in America as “the wild-haired and bespectacled seller,” read a statement that tied the work to climate change and global warming: “The Scream for me shows the horrifying moment when man realizes his impact on nature and the irreversible changes that he has initiated, making the planet increasingly uninhabitable. . . . More death, less life. And very few lifeboats left as we go down.”

Sold for $121 million at Christie’s New York in November 2024

The “crown jewel” of the auction market in 2024 (as Christie’s so humbly put it) was perhaps the finest example of a subject that Magritte revisited more than 25 times throughout his career: an otherworldly scene showing a house on tree-lined street at night. But instead being enveloped in darkness, the sky above the trees is impossibly blue, with big, cottony clouds floating by. This 1954 version of Empire of Light, which sold for $121 million and came from the collection of designer and philanthropist Mica Ertegun, set a new record for Magritte’s work at auction. 

After the sale, Christie’s chairman of 20th and 21st century art Alex Rotter said the house that evening had adopted a “masterpiece approach” to this sale. “In a market that is not so easy to maneuver, we thought that if we present the greatest works we can get … these are the best examples,” Rotter said, admitting that the auction had its share of lots that didn’t catch collectors’ attention. But “the works that we put all the emphasis behind really proved us right. They had multiple bidders and showed that a market based on individual taste is on the rise.”

Sold for $137.7 million at Christie’s New York in November 2022

Cézanne’s deliciously rich landscape of the French countryside and his beloved Mont Sainte-Victoire is the second of five works from the Paul Allen sale at Christie’s to make this list. When the hammer fell, Mont Sainte-Victoire (1888–90) doubled Cézanne’s previous auction high of $60.5 million, for a still life from the collection of John Hay Whitney. 

Like Cézanne’s best works, Mont Sainte-Victoire breaks aspects of the world—in this case, a French mountain—into shapes shaded with color, as though they were three-dimensional geometrical forms. In that way, Cézanne paved the way for Cubist artists such as Pablo Picasso and George Braque, who would push his innovations even further toward abstraction.

Sold for $139.3 million at Sotheby’s New York in November 2023

Woman with a Watch (1932), one of Picasso’s many paintings of his mistress Marie-Thérèse Walter, became the second most expensive work by the artist ever sold at auction when it fetched $139 million at Sotheby’s in 2023. The canvas, from the collection of late philanthropist Emily Fisher Landau, drew intense bidding before selling to a phone bidder represented by Sotheby’s head of global fine art, Brooke Lampley.

Woman with a Watch had a rarefied provenance, changing hands just a few times since Picasso painted it in 1932. It was acquired by Landau in 1968 from Pace Gallery, which had purchased it from Switzerland’s Galerie Beyeler two years earlier.

Pictures of Walter typically go for top dollar. In 2010, Nude, Green Leaves and Bust—also painted in 1932—broke records at $106.5 million. Still, the most expensive Picasso of all time is a work that does not depict Walter. But more on that in a bit.

Sold for $140.8 million at Poly International Auction Co., Ltd., Beijing in December 2017

Qi Baishi’s Twelve Screens of Landscapes (1925) shattered records in 2017, selling for RMB 931.5 million ($140.8 million) at Beijing Poly Auction and making it the most expensive Chinese artwork ever sold at auction. The bidding war lasted over 20 minutes, with more than 60 bid increments before a Chinese collector secured the 12-panel piece.

Each 70-inch panel captures a sweeping vista from Qi’s travels across China. Originally displayed at his solo exhibition in 1954 and later featured in a memorial show in 1958, the set of panels was kept by Qi’s pupil, Xiuyi Guo, before resurfacing at auction.

A similar version of Twelve Screens of Landscapes, painted around 1932 as a gift to Kuomintang general Wang Zuanxu, resides in the Chongqing Museum. The set sold in 2017 was the only one in private hands at the time, making it a rarity.

Sold for $141.3 million at Christie’s New York in May 2015

Alberto Giacometti’s Pointing Man (1947) became the most expensive sculpture ever sold at auction when it fetched $141.3 million at Christie’s New York in May 2015. The life-size bronze, standing at more than five and a half feet tall, was sold by real estate magnate Sheldon Solow, surpassing Giacometti’s previous auction record of $104.3 million, which was set at Sotheby’s London five years earlier by Walking Man I (1960).

One of six casts made by the artist (not counting an additional artist’s proof), this particular Pointing Man had been held privately for 45 years before the sale. Four of those casts reside in major museums, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Tate in London, which made this auction a prime opportunity for collectors. Similar sculptures by Giacometti depicting skeletal, elongated figures have likewise sold for big sums.

At the time, Christie’s head Pylkkänen called the piece “one of the finest works of art I have had the honor to handle.” Whoever bought the piece clearly agreed about its quality.

Sold for $142.4 million at Christie’s New York in November 2013

Francis Bacon’s Three Studies of Lucian Freud (1969) briefly became the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction when it sold for $142.4 million at Christie’s New York in November 2013. The triptych surpassed the previous record, held by Edvard Munch’s pastel The Scream, which sold for $119.9 million at Sotheby’s in 2012 (and which also appears on this list, above).

Bacon’s three-panel portrait—each part stands six and a half feet tall—depicts Bacon’s longtime friend and artistic rival, Lucian Freud, in a series of contorted poses. The piece had an unusual history: its panels were separated by a dealer in the 1970s and remained apart for 15 years before being reunited by a collector in 1989.

The work was expected to sell for over $85 million, but after a five-minute bidding war, it was secured by New York’s Acquavella Galleries. In a strategic move, Christie’s shifted the Bacon painting to the ninth lot of the evening to allow unsuccessful bidders a chance at other works—an approach that proved successful, contributing to the auction house’s record-breaking $691.6 million total for the night.

Shortly after the sale, the anonymous buyer lent the triptych to the Portland Art Museum for public viewing from December 2013 to March 2014.

Sold for $149 million at Christie’s New York in November 2022

In November 2022, an early 20th-century masterpiece by Georges Seurat, Models (Small Version) (1888), sold for a staggering $149 million at Christie’s New York. The painting, depicting three nude figures in Seurat’s signature pointillist style, was one of the rarest privately-owned works by the artist. It came from the collection of Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and was expected to surpass $100 million at auction.

The bidding opened at $75 million, drawing competition from four bidders, including specialists representing clients in New York and Asia. After several minutes of heated back-and-forth, the work hammered at $130 million, with Christie’s Asia chairman securing the piece for a final total of $149 million, including fees. The sale set a new auction record for Seurat, shattering his previous high of $34 million, achieved in 2018 for The Harbor at Grandcamp(1885).

The last time Models (Small Version) appeared on the market was in 1970, when it fetched just over $1 million at Christie’s. Prior to Allen’s ownership, it had belonged to the influential collector John Quinn, a champion of modernist artists in the early 20th century.

Sold for $157.2 million at Sotheby’s New York in May 2018

Amedeo Modigliani’s Reclining Nude (on Her Left Side) (1917), one of the artist’s most celebrated nudes, sold for $157.2 million at Sotheby’s New York in 2018. The total price, including the buyer’s premium, followed a hammer bid of $139 million, which fell just short of its undisclosed estimate of $150 million. Despite this, the sale set a record for the most expensive artwork ever sold at Sotheby’s at the time.

The large-scale canvas—depicting a nude woman gazing over her shoulder at the viewer—was the star lot of the auction house’s Impressionist and Modern art sale. Bidding opened at $125 million with auctioneer Helena Newman presiding over the room. The winning bid came from a client on the phone with Simon Shaw, Sotheby’s co-head of Impressionist and Modern art worldwide, after a subdued and measured exchange.

The work belongs to Modigliani’s groundbreaking series of reclining nudes, painted between 1916 and 1919. When first exhibited in 1917 at Parisian dealer Berthe Weill’s gallery, these erotic paintings caused such a scandal that police shut down the show after just two days. At the time, only two drawings were sold.

While the sale price was extraordinary, it did not surpass Modigliani’s auction record, which remains with Reclining Nude (1917–18), sold at Christie’s in 2015 for $170.4 million to Chinese collector Liu Yiqian. Sotheby’s, however, positioned Reclining Nude (on Her Left Side) as a transformative work, with Simon Shaw stating, “There is the nude before Modigliani, and there is the nude after Modigliani.”

Sold for $170.4 million at Christie’s New York in November 2015

Amedeo Modigliani’s Reclining Nude (1917–18) shattered expectations at Christie’s New York in 2015, selling for $170.4 million, more than doubling the artist’s previous auction record of $70.7 million. The work, which carried an on-request estimate of over $100 million, became the second-most expensive painting ever sold at auction at the time.

The sale took place during Christie’s curated evening auction, “The Artist’s Muse,” which aimed to build buzz around 20th-century masterpieces. Despite a mixed night—with several major lots, including works by Willem de Kooning and Lucian Freud, failing to sell—the Modigliani nude electrified the room. Bidding was fierce, ultimately concluding with a Chinese collector securing the work via telephone, as revealed by Pylkkänen after the sale. (The collector was later revealed to be Chinese billionaire businessman Liu Yiqian.)

Reclining Nude is part of Modigliani’s celebrated series of reclining nudes, painted between 1916 and 1919. These works, revolutionary in their sensuality and bold in their approach to form, scandalized Paris when first exhibited at Berthe Weill’s gallery in 1917, leading to the show’s abrupt closure by police. Today, they are considered among the most important contributions to the modern nude tradition.

The sale of Reclining Nude was a high point in an otherwise uneven auction, which totaled $491.4 million—above its $440 million low estimate but falling far short of the $705.8 million brought in by a similar sale earlier that year. While other records were set that night—including for works by Gustave Courbet, Balthus, and Roy Lichtenstein—the Modigliani painting stood out as the undeniable star of the evening, solidifying the artist’s status as one of the most sought-after names in the art market.

Sold for $179.4 million at Christie’s New York in May 2015

Pablo Picasso’s Women of Algiers (Version ‘O’) (1955) set a new auction record in 2015 when it sold for $179.4 million at Christie’s New York, becoming the most expensive painting ever sold at auction at the time. The painting, the final and most intricate piece in Picasso’s 15-work “Women of Algiers” series (1954–55), had an on-request estimate of around $140 million but soared past that figure after deep bidding.

The competition for the masterpiece played out entirely over the phone, with then-Christie’s executives Loic Gouzer and Brett Gorvy representing rival bidders. Pylkkänen, serving as auctioneer, declared “Still many people in the game” as bidding climbed past $140 million. Eventually, Gorvy’s bidder emerged victorious with a hammer price of $160 million, drawing cheers from the audience.

The “Women of Algiers” series was inspired by Eugène Delacroix’s 1834 masterpiece of the same name. Created in response to the Nationalist uprising in Algeria against French colonial rule, the series reflects Picasso’s fascination with both European Orientalist art and the evolving political landscape of the time. The version here is considered the most elaborate and fully realized of the set.

The painting had a notable provenance, originally acquired by New York collectors Victor and Sally Ganz directly from legendary dealer Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler in 1956. It first appeared at auction in 1997, when it sold for $31.9 million—meaning its value increased nearly sixfold in less than two decades.

While Christie’s maintained confidentiality regarding the winning bidder, reports later suggested that the buyer was former Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani. The sale reinforced Picasso’s dominance in the art market, cementing Women of Algiers (Version ‘O’) as one of the defining auction moments of the decade.

Sold for $195 million at Christie’s New York in May 2022

Andy Warhol’s Shot Sage Blue Marilyn, one of the most iconic images in modern art, became the most expensive 20th-century artwork ever sold at auction when it fetched $195 million at Christie’s New York in 2022. The silkscreen portrait, based on a publicity still of Marilyn Monroe from the 1953 film Niagara, is part of Warhol’s famous “Shot Marilyn” series—named after a 1964 incident when performance artist Dorothy Podber fired a gun at a stack of Warhol’s canvases.

The work was the star lot of the evening, drawing competition from four bidders, including three on the phone and one in the room. Art dealer Larry Gagosian, bidding in person, ultimately secured the painting with a hammer price of $170 million, well below its $200 million estimate.

The “Shot Marilyn” works are among Warhol’s most coveted pieces, with only five versions in existence. This particular portrait had been in a private collection for five decades, coming from the estate of Swiss dealers Thomas and Doris Ammann. With no financial guarantee, its sale marked a major moment for both the Warhol market and the broader contemporary art market.

In surpassing the $179.4 million record set by Picasso’s Women of Algiers (Version ‘O’) (1955) in 2015, Shot Sage Blue Marilyn reaffirmed Warhol’s place at the pinnacle of modern art valuations. While some experts saw the sale as a watershed moment, others noted that privately brokered transactions for blue-chip artworks have long exceeded the $200 million mark.

Sold for $450.3 million at Christie’s New York in November 2017

In a landmark moment in the art world, Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi (c. 1500) set a new record for the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction, fetching an astonishing $450.3 million at Christie’s in New York in November 2017. The sale, which took place in a packed salesroom at Christie’s Rockefeller Center headquarters, was driven by an intense 19-minute bidding war.

Bidding began in earnest at $100 million—which was also the guarantee—and escalated rapidly from there, with cheers and applause breaking out as the painting crossed the $200 million threshold. Pylkkanen, again serving as auctioneer, skillfully kept the crowd engaged as bids climbed incrementally in the final moments. At one point, the bidding reached $350 million, before finally settling at $400 million, with an additional $50 million in fees for the buyer.

The Salvator Mundi’s journey to the auction block was filled with intrigue, including debates over its authenticity and a controversial restoration by conservator Dianne Modestini. Despite these uncertainties, the painting’s remarkable backstory and its connection to Leonardo da Vinci—whether authentic or not—captivated buyers. The work had once sold for just $1,175 in 2005, when it was attributed to a follower of Leonardo, but was later restored and re-attributed to the master himself.

The sale marked a culmination of a carefully orchestrated marketing campaign by Christie’s, which included a global tour and celebrity endorsements, such as Patti Smith and Leonardo DiCaprio. The Salvator Mundi’s new auction price far eclipsed the previous record-holder, Pablo Picasso’s Women of Algiers (Version O) (1955), which had sold for $179 million earlier that year.

This sale marked not only a record-breaking moment for the auction house but also highlighted the increasingly influential role of market value in the art world, where the price tag may overshadow the painting’s historical and artistic significance.

The buyer of Salvator Mundi was revealed a month after to the sale to be Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman, with quiet plans for it to eventually go on view in Riyadh.