17th November 2017
Rare Da Vinci painting smashes world records with $450 million sale (cnn.com).
“Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Salvator Mundi’—featuring Christ with hand raised in blessing in the tradition of Christian iconography—has become the most expensive artwork to ever sell at auction, going for $450.3 million at Christie’s in New York. Dating back to around 1500, the rare painting is one of fewer than 20 authenticated works by the Italian in existence.”
The painting, “Salvator Mundi” (“Savior of the World”), was commissioned by Louis XII of France and later owned by England’s Charles I, but was then lost in the late 18th Century and dismissed as a copy when reappearing in poor condition and heavily overpainted in 1958 and sold for £45 ($59). But acquired by a group of art dealers in 2005, it was restored and subsequently authenticated, with the previous owner, a Russian businessman purchasing it for $127.5m in 2013.
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