This is a list of the highest known prices paid for paintings. The earliest sale on the list (Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh)
is from 1987, and more than tripled the previous record price, set only
two years before, introducing a new era in top picture prices. The sale
was also significant in that for the first time a "modern" painting (in
this case from 1888) became the record holder, as opposed to the old master paintings which had always previously held it. Since that time sales of the most valuable paintings have usually been made at auctions,
though that had by no means always been the case before, and the list
below still shows some "private sales", including the five most
expensive. The current record price was paid for The Card Players by Paul Cézanne, which was sold for more than $250 million in 2011
Background
The world's most famous paintings, especially old master works done before 1800, are generally owned or held at museums, for viewing for patrons. The museums very rarely sell them, and as such, they are quite literally priceless. Guinness World Records lists the Mona Lisa as having the highest insurance value for a painting in history. It was assessed at US$100 million on December 14, 1962, before the painting toured the United States for several months. However, the Louvre chose to spend the money that would have been spent on the insurance premium on security instead. Taking inflation into account, the 1962 value would be around US$772 million today.
The earliest sale on the list below (Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh)
is from March 1987; with a price of £24.75 million ($82 million in
current dollars) it tripled the previous record and introduced a new era
in top art sales. Before this, the highest absolute price paid for a
painting was £8.1 million ($23 million in current dollars) paid by the J. Paul Getty Museum for Mantegna's Adoration of the Magi at Christie's in London on April 18, 1985.[4] In constant dollars, the highest price paid before 1987 was by the National Gallery of Art when in February 1967 they acquired Leonardo da Vinci's Ginevra de' Benci for around $5 million ($35 million in current dollars) from the Princely Family of Liechtenstein. The sale of Van Gogh's Sunflowers
was also significant in that for the first time a "modern" (in this
case 1888) painting became the record holder, as opposed to the old master paintings
which previously had dominated the market. In contrast, there are
currently only six pre-1850 paintings among the top 43 listed.
Van Gogh and Picasso
Vincent van Gogh and Pablo Picasso
are by far the best represented artists in the list. Whereas Picasso
became a wealthy man, Van Gogh (supposedly) sold only one painting in
his lifetime, The Red Vineyard, for 400 Francs (about $1600 in 2011) to the impressionist painter and heiress Anna Boch.[5] His seven paintings in the list below alone were sold for over 712 million current dollars.
List of highest prices paid at auctions or private sales (inflation adjusted)
This list is ordered by consumer price index inflation-adjusted value[note 1] (in bold) in millions of September 2013 United States dollars. Where necessary, the price is first converted to dollars using the exchange rate
at the time the painting was sold. The inflation adjustment may change
as recent inflation rates are often revised. A list in another currency
may be in a slightly different order due to exchange rate fluctuations.
Paintings are only listed once, i.e. for the highest price sold.
| Adjusted price (in millions) | Original price (in millions) | Painting | Image | Artist | Year | Date of sale | Rank at sale | Seller | Buyer | Auction house |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $269.4 | $259 +[note 2] | The Card Players | Paul Cézanne | 1892/93 | April 2011 | 1 | George Embiricos | State of Qatar | Private sale [1][2][3] | |
| $162.7 | $140 | No. 5, 1948 | Jackson Pollock | 1948 | November 2, 2006 | 1 | David Geffen | David Martinez | Private sale via Sotheby's[6] | |
| $159.8 | $137.5 | Woman III | Willem de Kooning | 1953 | November 18, 2006 | 2 | David Geffen | Steven A. Cohen | Private sale via Larry Gagosian[7] | |
| $155.9 | $155 | Le Rêve | Pablo Picasso | 1932 | March 26, 2013 | 4 | Steve Wynn | Steven A. Cohen | Private sale[8] | |
| $155.8 | $135 | Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I | Gustav Klimt | 1907 | June 18, 2006 | 1 | Maria Altmann | Ronald Lauder, Neue Galerie | Private sale via Christie's[9] | |
| $149.5 | $82.5 | Portrait of Dr. Gachet | Vincent van Gogh | 1890 | May 15, 1990 | 1 | Siegfried Kramarsky family | Ryoei Saito.[note 3] | Christie's, New York | |
| $142.4 | $142.4 | Three Studies of Lucian Freud | Francis Bacon | 1969 | November 12, 2013 | 7 | Elaine Wynn, ex-wife of Steve Wynn [12] | Christie's, New York [13] | ||
| $141.5 | $78.1 | Bal du moulin de la Galette[note 4] | Pierre-Auguste Renoir | 1876 | May 17, 1990 | 2 | Betsey Whitney | Ryoei Saito[note 5] | Sotheby's, New York | |
| $129.0 | $104.2 | Garçon à la pipe | Pablo Picasso | 1905 | May 4, 2004 | 3 | Greentree foundation (Whitney family) | Barilla Group?[14] | Sotheby's, New York[15] | |
| $122.2 | $119.9 | The Scream[note 6] | Edvard Munch | 1895 | May 2, 2012 | 8 | Petter Olsen | Leon Black [16] | Sotheby's, New York | |
| $118.3 | $110.0 | Flag[note 7] | Jasper Johns | 1954 | March 2010 | 8 | Jean-Christophe Castelli | Steven A. Cohen | Private sale, estimated price[17] | |
| $114.3 | $106.5 | Nude, Green Leaves and Bust | Pablo Picasso | 1932 | May 4, 2010 | 7 | Frances Lasker Brody estate | Christie's, New York[18] | ||
| $111 ++ | $58 plus exchange of works[note 8] | Portrait of Joseph Roulin | Vincent van Gogh | 1889 | August 1, 1989 | 1 | Private collection, Zürich | Museum of Modern Art New York | Private sale via Thomas Ammann, Fine Art Zurich[19] | |
| $110.1 | $95.2 | Dora Maar au Chat | Pablo Picasso | 1941 | May 3, 2006 | 4 | Gidwitz family | Boris Ivanishvili[20] | Sotheby's, New York[21] | |
| $109.4 | $53.9 | Irises | Vincent van Gogh | 1889 | November 11, 1987 | 1 | son of Joan Whitney Payson | Alan Bond[note 9] | Sotheby's, New York | |
| $108.1 | $100.0 | Eight Elvises | Andy Warhol | 1963 | October 2008 | 10 | Annibale Berlingieri | Private sale via Philippe Ségalot[22] | ||
| $105.7 | $105.7 (¥10,300) | Anna's Light | Barnett Newman | 1968 | October 4, 2013 | 16 | DIC Corp. | Private sale [23][24][25] | ||
| $105.4 | $105.4 | Silver Car Crash (Double Disaster) | Andy Warhol | 1963 | November 13, 2013 | 17 | Sotheby's, New York [26] | |||
| $102.1 | $87.9 | Adele Bloch-Bauer II |
|
Gustav Klimt | 1912 | November 2, 2006 | 9 | Maria Altmann | Christie's, New York | |
| $102.1 | $71.5 | Portrait de l'artiste sans barbe |
|
Vincent van Gogh | 1889 | November 19, 1998 | 5 | Heirs of Jacques Koerfer (de) | Christie's, New York | |
| $99.7 | $76.7 (£49.5) | Massacre of the Innocents | Peter Paul Rubens | 1611 | July 10, 2002 | 6 | an Austrian family | Kenneth Thomson[note 10] | Sotheby's, London | |
| $93.3 | $86.3 | Triptych, 1976 | Francis Bacon | 1976 | May 14, 2008 | 13 | Moueix Family, Château Pétrus[28] | Roman Abramovich[29] | Sotheby's, New York[30] | |
| $92.8 | $80.0 | False Start | Jasper Johns | 1959 | October 12, 2006 | 10 | David Geffen | Kenneth C. Griffin | Private sale via Richard Gray [31] | |
| $92.6 | $57 | A Wheatfield with Cypresses |
|
Vincent van Gogh | 1889 | May 1993 | 5 | son of Emil Georg Bührle | Walter H. Annenberg[note 11] | Private sale via Steven Mazoh |
| $91.7 | $49.3 (F300) | Les Noces de Pierrette | Pablo Picasso | 1905 | November 30, 1989 | 3 | Fredrik Roos (sv)[32] | Tomonori Tsurumaki | Binoche et Godeau Paris | |
| $90.5 | $47.85 | Yo, Picasso | Pablo Picasso | 1901 | May 9, 1989 | 2 | Wendell Cherry (de) | Stavros Niarchos | Sotheby's, New York | |
| $90.1 | $80.0 | Turquoise Marilyn | Andy Warhol | 1964 | May 20, 2007 | 17 | Stefan Edlis | Steven A. Cohen | Private sale via Larry Gagosian[33] | |
| $88.8 | $70.0 | Portrait of Alfonso d'Avalos, Marquis of Vasto, in Armor with a Page | Titian | 1533 | November 2003 | 10 | AXA insurance company | Getty Museum | Private sale via Hervé Aaron[34][35] | |
| $88.5 | $86.9 | Orange, Red, Yellow | Mark Rothko | 1961 | May 8, 2012 | 24 | Estate of David Pincus | Christie's, New York[36] | ||
| $86.2 | $80.5 (£40.9) | Le Bassin aux Nymphéas | Claude Monet | 1919 | June 24, 2008 | 20 | J. Irwin and Xenia S. Miller | Christie's, London[37] | ||
| $85.2 | $60.5 | Rideau, Cruchon et Compotier[note 12] | Paul Cézanne | 1894 | May 10, 1999 | 9 | Whitney Family | Sotheby's, New York | ||
| $82.9 | $39.7 (£24.75) | Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers |
|
Vincent van Gogh | 1888 | March 30, 1987 | 1 | daughter-in-law of Chester Beatty | Yasuo Goto, Yasuda Comp. | Christie's, London |
| $82.0 | $72.8 | White Center (Yellow, Pink and Lavender on Rose) | Mark Rothko | 1950 | May 15, 2007 | 21 | David Rockefeller, Sr. | Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani[39] | Sotheby's, New York[40] | |
| $80.8 | $71.7 | Green Car Crash (Green Burning Car I) | Andy Warhol | 1963 | May 16, 2007 | 22 | Private collection, Zürich | Philip Niarchos | Christie's, New York[41] | |
| $77.9 | $70.6 (£50) | Diana and Actaeon |
|
Titian | 1556–1559 | February 1, 2009 | 26 | Duke of Sutherland | National Galleries of Scotland & National Gallery, London | Private sale[42][43][44] |
| $77.7 | $75 (€50-60) [note 13] | Darmstadt Madonna |
|
Hans Holbein | 1526 | July 12, 2011 | 29 | Donatus, Hereditary Prince of Hesse | Reinhold Würth | Private sale via Christoph Graf Douglas[45] |
| $77.0 | $68 | The Gross Clinic |
|
Thomas Eakins | 1875 | April 12, 2007 | 21 | Thomas Jefferson University | Philadelphia Museum of Art | Private sale.[46] |
| $76.0 | $75.1 | No 1 (Royal Red and Blue) | Mark Rothko | 1954 | November 13, 2012 | 33 | John and Anne Marion | Sotheby's, New York [47] | ||
| $75.7 | $40.7 | Au Lapin Agile | Pablo Picasso | 1904 | November 27, 1989 | 5 | daughter of Joan Whitney Payson | Walter H. Annenberg | Sotheby's, New York | |
| $75.0 | $38.5 (£20.9) | Acrobate et jeune arlequin[note 14] | Pablo Picasso | 1905 | November 28, 1988 | 3 | heir of Roger Janssen? [note 15] | Mitsukoshi | Christie's, London | |
| $74.0 | $55.0 | Femme aux Bras Croisés |
|
Pablo Picasso | 1902 | November 8, 2000 | 13 | McCormick family, Chicago | Christie's, New York[48] | |
| $73.8 | $69.0 | Nude Sitting on a Divan ("La Belle Romaine") |
|
Amedeo Modigliani | 1917 | November 2, 2010 | 32 | Halit Cıngıllıoglu[49] | Sotheby's, New York[50] | |
| $73.7 | $63.5 | Police Gazette[51] | Willem de Kooning | 1955 | October 12, 2006 | 20 | David Geffen | Steven A. Cohen | Private sale via Richard Gray [31] | |
| $73.2 | $71.7 (£45) | Diana and Callisto |
|
Titian | 1556–1559 | March 2, 2012 | 36 | Duke of Sutherland | National Galleries of Scotland & National Gallery, London | Private sale[52] |
| $69.3 | $47.5 | Peasant Woman Against a Background of Wheat |
|
Vincent van Gogh | 1890 | 1997 | 11 | Steve Wynn[note 16] | Private sale via Acquavella Galleries Inc., New York[54] | |
| $69.0 | $49.6 | Femme assise dans un jardin | Pablo Picasso | 1938 | November 10, 1999 | 15 | Robert Saidenberg[55] | Sotheby's, New York | ||
| $67.9 | $65.5 (¥425.5) | Eagle Standing on Pine Tree[56] | Qi Baishi | 1946 | May 22, 2011 | 38 | Liu Yiqian | Hunan TV & Broadcast Intermediary Co[57] | China Guardian Auctions | |
| $67.8 | $63.4 | Men in Her Life | Andy Warhol | 1962 | November 8, 2010 | 37 | Jose Mugrabi | Phillips de Pury & Company[58] | ||
| $66.6 | $35.2 | Portrait of a Halberdier | Pontormo | 1537 | May 31, 1989 | 5 | Chauncey Devereaux Stillman | Getty Museum | Christie's, New York | |
| $66.1 | $60.0 | Suprematist Composition | Kazimir Malevich | 1916 | November 3, 2008 | 35 | Heirs of Kazimir Malevich | Sotheby's, New York[59] | ||
| $64.4 | $62.1 (¥402.5) | Zhichuan Resettlement[60] | Wang Meng | 1350 | June 4, 2011 | 42 | Beijing Poly Auction | |||
| $63.9 | $61.7 | 1949-A-No.1 | Clyfford Still | 1949 | November 9, 2011 | 44 | City and County of Denver | Sotheby's, New York[61] |
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