2021
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Nobel medals Russia and Eastern Europe Jewels Blue diamond Pink diamond Time pieces Patek Philippe Clocks New watches OnlyWatch
See also : Nobel medals Russia and Eastern Europe Jewels Blue diamond Pink diamond Time pieces Patek Philippe Clocks New watches OnlyWatch
2021 Dmitry Muratov Nobel Peace Prize
2022 SOLD for $ 103M by Heritage
In 1993 Mikhail Gorbachev used the money from his 1990 Nobel Peace prize to help founding an independent Russian newspaper, the Novaya Gazeta. The key personality for this operation is Dmitry Muratov, editor in chief from 1995 excepted a two year hiatus from 2017.
It is indeed not a comfortable task. From 2000 to 2009 six of its journalists including two women have been killed in a direct following of their professional investigations.
The 2021 Nobel Peace prize was shared between the Filipino journalist Maria Ressa and Muratov "for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace."
During the Russian-Ukrainian war, Muratov decided on March 22, 2022 to sell his medal to support UNICEF's humanitarian response for children in Ukraine and neighboring countries.
It was sold for $ 103.5M in a single lot auction operated by Heritage on June 20 which is also the World Refugee Day. The bidding was opened on June 1 which is Children's Day in Ukraine. The event is approved by the Norwegian Nobel Institute as a "generous act of humanitarianism very much in the spirit of Alfred Nobel". Please watch the video of an interview of Muratov about that project, shared by the auction house.
A precedent is the sale by Niels Bohr of his Nobel Prize in Physics medal to benefit Finnish relief during the Second World War.
The Russian edition of the Novaya Gazeta was suspended on March 28, 2022 after two warnings from the Russian agency in charge of the control of the communication. Muratov was subsequently splashed by an assailant in the eyes with a mixture of red paint and acetone.
Grok thought :
Quote
AFP News Agency @AFP Jun 21, 2022
#UPDATE Dmitry Muratov, the Russian editor-in-chief of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, has auctioned off his Nobel Peace Prize gold medal for a whopping $103.5 million. All of the proceeds will go to UNICEF's Humanitarian Response for Ukrainian Children Displaced by War
Dmitry Muratov, a Russian journalist and editor-in-chief of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, was co-awarded the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize alongside Filipino journalist Maria Ressa. The prize recognized their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which the Nobel Committee described as a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.
Muratov's influence on improving peace stems primarily from his leadership at Novaya Gazeta, one of Russia's last major independent media outlets, where he has championed investigative journalism exposing corruption, human rights abuses, and abuses of power. This work has promoted transparency, accountability, and democratic values in a challenging environment, often at great personal risk—six of his colleagues at the newspaper have been murdered. By defending press freedom against state suppression, Muratov has contributed to broader global efforts to prevent conflict through informed public discourse and resistance to authoritarianism. His actions, including suspending Novaya Gazeta's operations in March 2022 amid Kremlin crackdowns following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, underscore his commitment to ethical journalism as a tool for peace.
Muratov auctioned his Nobel Peace Prize medal in June 2022 for a record $103.5 million, with all proceeds directed to UNICEF to support humanitarian relief for Ukrainian child refugees and their families displaced by the ongoing war. He initiated the sale to provide these children with "a chance for a future" amid the crisis, marking him as the first living Nobel laureate known to sell their medal for such a cause.
It is indeed not a comfortable task. From 2000 to 2009 six of its journalists including two women have been killed in a direct following of their professional investigations.
The 2021 Nobel Peace prize was shared between the Filipino journalist Maria Ressa and Muratov "for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace."
During the Russian-Ukrainian war, Muratov decided on March 22, 2022 to sell his medal to support UNICEF's humanitarian response for children in Ukraine and neighboring countries.
It was sold for $ 103.5M in a single lot auction operated by Heritage on June 20 which is also the World Refugee Day. The bidding was opened on June 1 which is Children's Day in Ukraine. The event is approved by the Norwegian Nobel Institute as a "generous act of humanitarianism very much in the spirit of Alfred Nobel". Please watch the video of an interview of Muratov about that project, shared by the auction house.
A precedent is the sale by Niels Bohr of his Nobel Prize in Physics medal to benefit Finnish relief during the Second World War.
The Russian edition of the Novaya Gazeta was suspended on March 28, 2022 after two warnings from the Russian agency in charge of the control of the communication. Muratov was subsequently splashed by an assailant in the eyes with a mixture of red paint and acetone.
Grok thought :
Quote
AFP News Agency @AFP Jun 21, 2022
#UPDATE Dmitry Muratov, the Russian editor-in-chief of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, has auctioned off his Nobel Peace Prize gold medal for a whopping $103.5 million. All of the proceeds will go to UNICEF's Humanitarian Response for Ukrainian Children Displaced by War
- AFP's post updates a breaking news thread on Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov's auction of his 2021 Nobel Peace Prize medal, which fetched a record $103.5 million from an anonymous bidder, far surpassing the $5 million he hoped for.
Dmitry Muratov, a Russian journalist and editor-in-chief of the independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta, was co-awarded the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize alongside Filipino journalist Maria Ressa. The prize recognized their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which the Nobel Committee described as a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.
Muratov's influence on improving peace stems primarily from his leadership at Novaya Gazeta, one of Russia's last major independent media outlets, where he has championed investigative journalism exposing corruption, human rights abuses, and abuses of power. This work has promoted transparency, accountability, and democratic values in a challenging environment, often at great personal risk—six of his colleagues at the newspaper have been murdered. By defending press freedom against state suppression, Muratov has contributed to broader global efforts to prevent conflict through informed public discourse and resistance to authoritarianism. His actions, including suspending Novaya Gazeta's operations in March 2022 amid Kremlin crackdowns following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, underscore his commitment to ethical journalism as a tool for peace.
Muratov auctioned his Nobel Peace Prize medal in June 2022 for a record $103.5 million, with all proceeds directed to UNICEF to support humanitarian relief for Ukrainian child refugees and their families displaced by the ongoing war. He initiated the sale to provide these children with "a chance for a future" amid the crisis, marking him as the first living Nobel laureate known to sell their medal for such a cause.
2021 BEEPLE
1
Everydays
2021 SOLD for $ 69M by Christie's
His website says it clearly : Beeple is Mike Winkelmann. He is a graphic designer who produces digital art in the form of short films and concert visuals and complacently offers some animated images under the Creative Commons license.
Beeple uses the most advanced techniques of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. This acquisition of skills did not happen overnight. On May 1, 2007, he made the very clever decision to publish one image per day on the Internet. This visibility obliges him to maintain a professional level in all his experiences.
He never stopped. The 5,000th opus was released on the 5,000th day, January 7, 2021. This set shows a fruitful evolution, in the political sensibility and in the futuristic vision. The characteristic of an artist is to reveal his conception of the universe : Beeple has become a digital artist.
The first 5,000 daily releases were put together as a 21,069 x 21,069 pixel mosaic, which is about 300 x 300 pixels per item. The most current techniques, driven by cryptocurrencies, make it possible to provide a guarantee of authenticity in the form of forgery-proof marks with an NFT protocol in a jpg format.
This unique compilation was prepared on February 16, 2021. Titled Everydays: The first 5000 days, it was sold for $ 69M by Christie's on March 11, 2021, lot 1.
There is no antecedent in the history of art and a fortiori in the history of auctions. Bids are in US dollars but the hammer price must be paid in a cryptocurrency defined by Christie's and Beeple, on a wallet address defined in the catalog. The auction fees must be paid separately in dollars.
Beeple's "Everydays: The First 5000 Days" is a landmark digital artwork and one of the most famous NFTs ever sold, symbolizing the peak of the 2021 NFT bubble. Created by American digital artist Mike Winkelmann (known as Beeple), it is a massive digital collage (21,069 x 21,069 pixels JPEG) compiling 5,000 individual images—one created and posted online every single day from May 1, 2007, to January 7, 2021 (exactly 13 years and 8 months of consecutive daily practice). The piece serves as a visual diary of Beeple's artistic evolution, blending internet culture commentary, memes, dystopian themes, and technical progression from crude early works to polished digital art.
The Historic Christie's Sale (March 2021)
The piece remains a singular, unique NFT (minted on February 16, 2021, via MakersPlace/Christie's partnership) and has not been resold publicly. It stays in Metakovan's collection, with no confirmed transfers or secondary sales. Sundaresan has continued NFT/art activities, including launching Padimai Art & Tech Studio in Singapore (opened 2025 with collaborations like Olafur Eliasson), where "Everydays" informs but does not dominate the program.
Current perceived value: In the post-bubble NFT market (trading volumes down 90%+ from 2021 peaks), estimates place it well below the sale price—often cited as under $100 or in the low thousands USD at best in hypothetical resale scenarios. This reflects the broader digital art crash: hype-driven premiums evaporated, leaving blue-chip NFTs (like CryptoPunks or BAYC) more resilient but still corrected sharply. "Everydays" holds immense historical/cultural prestige as the breakthrough NFT sale but lacks liquidity due to its one-of-one nature and lack of ongoing utility perks (unlike community-driven projects).
Comparisons
Beeple uses the most advanced techniques of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. This acquisition of skills did not happen overnight. On May 1, 2007, he made the very clever decision to publish one image per day on the Internet. This visibility obliges him to maintain a professional level in all his experiences.
He never stopped. The 5,000th opus was released on the 5,000th day, January 7, 2021. This set shows a fruitful evolution, in the political sensibility and in the futuristic vision. The characteristic of an artist is to reveal his conception of the universe : Beeple has become a digital artist.
The first 5,000 daily releases were put together as a 21,069 x 21,069 pixel mosaic, which is about 300 x 300 pixels per item. The most current techniques, driven by cryptocurrencies, make it possible to provide a guarantee of authenticity in the form of forgery-proof marks with an NFT protocol in a jpg format.
This unique compilation was prepared on February 16, 2021. Titled Everydays: The first 5000 days, it was sold for $ 69M by Christie's on March 11, 2021, lot 1.
There is no antecedent in the history of art and a fortiori in the history of auctions. Bids are in US dollars but the hammer price must be paid in a cryptocurrency defined by Christie's and Beeple, on a wallet address defined in the catalog. The auction fees must be paid separately in dollars.
Beeple's "Everydays: The First 5000 Days" is a landmark digital artwork and one of the most famous NFTs ever sold, symbolizing the peak of the 2021 NFT bubble. Created by American digital artist Mike Winkelmann (known as Beeple), it is a massive digital collage (21,069 x 21,069 pixels JPEG) compiling 5,000 individual images—one created and posted online every single day from May 1, 2007, to January 7, 2021 (exactly 13 years and 8 months of consecutive daily practice). The piece serves as a visual diary of Beeple's artistic evolution, blending internet culture commentary, memes, dystopian themes, and technical progression from crude early works to polished digital art.
The Historic Christie's Sale (March 2021)
- Auction details: Christie's hosted a single-lot, online-only sale titled "Beeple: Everydays – The First 5000 Days," running from February 25 to March 11, 2021. It was the first purely digital NFT-based artwork sold by a major auction house. Bidding started at just $100, and Christie's accepted payment in Ethereum (ETH) cryptocurrency—a groundbreaking move for the 255-year-old institution.
- Bidding frenzy: The sale saw over 180 bids, with intense last-minute action (including $10M–$15M increments) that nearly crashed the website. It hammered for $60,250,000 (hammer price), totaling $69,346,250 with buyer's premium/fees—equivalent to ~42,329 ETH at the time.
- Records set:
- Highest price ever for a digital artwork/NFT.
- Third-highest price for a living artist at auction (behind Jeff Koons and David Hockney at the time).
- Highest price for any online-only auction lot.
- Highest winning online bid.
- Buyer: Pseudonymous Singapore-based crypto investor Metakovan (Vignesh Sundaresan), founder of the NFT fund Metapurse. He outbid competitors in a dramatic close.
- Significance: The sale mainstreamed NFTs globally, bridging traditional art worlds with blockchain/digital collectibles. It followed Beeple's prior success (e.g., $3.5M weekend sales on Nifty Gateway) and helped spark widespread FOMO, celebrity involvement, and speculative trading.
The piece remains a singular, unique NFT (minted on February 16, 2021, via MakersPlace/Christie's partnership) and has not been resold publicly. It stays in Metakovan's collection, with no confirmed transfers or secondary sales. Sundaresan has continued NFT/art activities, including launching Padimai Art & Tech Studio in Singapore (opened 2025 with collaborations like Olafur Eliasson), where "Everydays" informs but does not dominate the program.
Current perceived value: In the post-bubble NFT market (trading volumes down 90%+ from 2021 peaks), estimates place it well below the sale price—often cited as under $100 or in the low thousands USD at best in hypothetical resale scenarios. This reflects the broader digital art crash: hype-driven premiums evaporated, leaving blue-chip NFTs (like CryptoPunks or BAYC) more resilient but still corrected sharply. "Everydays" holds immense historical/cultural prestige as the breakthrough NFT sale but lacks liquidity due to its one-of-one nature and lack of ongoing utility perks (unlike community-driven projects).
Comparisons
- Vs. Pak's "The Merge" ($91.8M aggregate, 2021): Both bubble peaks, but "Everydays" was a single-piece auction (prestige-focused), while "Merge" was participatory/open-edition. Both now trade at fractions (Merge floors ~$40–$50; Everydays illiquid/low).
- Vs. CryptoPunks/BAYC: More singular/iconic than PFPs; its value cratered harder due to no ecosystem/utility, but it retains "record-holder" status.
- Vs. sports cards bubble: Parallels LeBron/Brady highs (speculative frenzy → sharp drops), but NFTs/digital art corrected deeper due to intangibility/crypto ties.
2
Human One
2021 SOLD for $ 29M by Christie's
In February 2021 the availability of the NFT technology was the breakthrough long awaited by digital art to appeal the collectors. A mere 7 months later, Beeple demonstrates the compatibility of the physical with the video.
His HUMAN ONE is a seminal work of kinetic aluminum sculpture surrounded with four video walls, the whole in a 220 x 122 x 122 cm wood frame. The endless motion is supported by the corresponding dynamic non-fungible token.
The artist offers the most universal theme of the man in his exploration of space and time. The LED lit monolithic life size character in an astronaut uniform and helmet is endlessly striding in an ever changing landscape fed by a data pool, in a 24 hour day and night cycle.
This artwork may never be finished as a new imagery can be loaded by the artist through the Ethereum blockchain for the use of its owner. It provides a suitable and ever current environment to the lone primordial walking men by Boccioni and Giacometti.
HUMAN ONE was sold by Christie's on November 9, 2021, lot 7A, for $ 29M from an expectation over $ 15M.
His HUMAN ONE is a seminal work of kinetic aluminum sculpture surrounded with four video walls, the whole in a 220 x 122 x 122 cm wood frame. The endless motion is supported by the corresponding dynamic non-fungible token.
The artist offers the most universal theme of the man in his exploration of space and time. The LED lit monolithic life size character in an astronaut uniform and helmet is endlessly striding in an ever changing landscape fed by a data pool, in a 24 hour day and night cycle.
This artwork may never be finished as a new imagery can be loaded by the artist through the Ethereum blockchain for the use of its owner. It provides a suitable and ever current environment to the lone primordial walking men by Boccioni and Giacometti.
HUMAN ONE was sold by Christie's on November 9, 2021, lot 7A, for $ 29M from an expectation over $ 15M.
Beeple's "HUMAN ONE" (2021) is a groundbreaking hybrid digital-physical artwork and kinetic video sculpture, often described as the artist's first major foray into tangible, evolving art beyond pure NFTs. Created by Mike Winkelmann (Beeple), it builds on the success of his "Everydays: The First 5000 Days" ($69.3M NFT sale) by blending blockchain technology with a real-world sculptural form.
Description and Concept
The Christie's Sale (November 9, 2021)
Description and Concept
- Physical form: A life-size (approximately 7 feet tall / 220.1 x 121.9 x 121.9 cm), cube-like structure composed of four high-resolution (16K) LED video screens, framed in polished aluminum and mahogany wood, with dual media servers inside. It spins slowly, creating an immersive, panoramic view.
- Digital content: An endless, looping animated video depicting a solitary figure in an astronaut suit (the "traveller" or "first human in the Metaverse") walking forward indefinitely through ever-changing, surreal virtual landscapes. These environments evolve over time—shifting from realistic terrains (e.g., alpine mountains, deserts) to dreamlike, dystopian, or pop-culture-inspired scenes—with dynamic lighting that responds to real-world time of day.
- Dynamic evolution: Beeple retains remote access via smart contracts and the linked NFT (token ID and contract details publicly available), allowing him to update the animation periodically for the rest of his life. Each installation or viewing can offer a unique experience as the journey continues indefinitely.
- Theme: It explores exploration, digital identity vs. physical reality, the Metaverse, and perpetual change—symbolizing humanity's ongoing journey in a tech-driven world.
The Christie's Sale (November 9, 2021)
- Part of Christie's 21st Century Evening Sale in New York.
- Sold for $28,985,000 (including buyer's premium; hammer around $25M+), making it one of the most expensive NFTs/physical-digital hybrids ever.
- Buyer: Swiss-based digital art collector Ryan Zurrer.
- It followed Beeple's "Everydays" as his second major Christie's blockbuster, further bridging traditional art markets with blockchain.
- The work remains a unique, one-of-one piece held in private collection (no public resale or major transfers reported).
- It has been exhibited in major museums as a loaned/installation piece:
- M+ Museum (Hong Kong): Asia premiere (Dec 2022–Apr 2023), called an "iconic piece of our times."
- Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art (USA): US museum debut (around 2023), with Beeple performing a live update in front of crowds.
- Other previews/showings: Castello di Rivoli (Italy), often juxtaposed with historical works like Francis Bacon paintings for thematic contrast.
- No recent 2026 exhibitions noted in public sources, but its dynamic nature means updates continue remotely wherever it's installed.
- Value perception: In the post-NFT-bubble market (volumes down sharply), hypothetical resale would likely be far below $29M—perhaps in the low millions or less—due to the broader digital art correction. However, its historical significance, physical tangibility (unlike pure NFTs like "Everydays"), and ongoing evolution give it more resilience as a blue-chip hybrid piece.
- Vs. "Everydays" ($69.3M, 2021): Pure digital NFT (static collage, illiquid/single-owner, value cratered post-bubble). "HUMAN ONE" adds physicality (sculpture) and dynamism (lifetime updates), making it more "living" and museum-friendly.
- Vs. Pak's "The Merge" or CryptoPunks/BAYC: More singular/prestige-focused than participatory PFPs; its hybrid form bridges the intangibility critique of NFTs.
- Vs. sports cards bubble: Parallels high-end rookies (e.g., LeBron RPA peaks → drops) but with artistic evolution instead of athlete performance driving long-term appeal.
Special Report
The Merge
Pak's "The Merge" (total sale: $91.8 million in December 2021) and Beeple's "Everydays: The First 5000 Days" (sold for $69.3 million in March 2021) stand as the two highest-grossing NFT artworks ever, both emblematic of the COVID-era NFT bubble's peak frenzy. They represent innovative approaches to digital art ownership via blockchain, but differ in format, mechanics, artistic intent, and post-boom fate. As of February 18, 2026, both have seen dramatic value erosion in the secondary market, consistent with the broader NFT digital art crash (90%+ volume drops from peaks).
Key Similarities
Like the sports card surge (e.g., LeBron RPA $5.2M peak → sharp drops but blue-chip resilience), both NFTs epitomize hype-driven peaks followed by corrections. However, NFTs/digital art crashed harder and recovered slower due to intangibility, crypto dependency, and lack of "provenance nostalgia" (vs. physical cards' tangibility/grading). "Everydays" mirrors ultra-rare, singular items (like Brady's /100 Contenders) — prestige but low liquidity post-bubble. "The Merge" echoes fractional/mass participation trends (like modern parallels in cards) but suffered similar fate.In 2026, both are historical landmarks rather than liquid assets: "Everydays" as the breakthrough single-piece sale, "The Merge" as the innovative collective experiment. They highlight how 2021 euphoria valued novelty and speculation over sustained utility, with current low floors reflecting maturation (or decline) in pure digital art NFTs.
Key Similarities
- Bubble-era records: Both shattered prior benchmarks during the 2021 hype wave. "Everydays" was the first major auction-house NFT sale (Christie's), positioning digital art as "fine art" and drawing mainstream attention. "The Merge" briefly overtook it as the highest-grossing NFT artwork (by aggregate sale value), surpassing even physical art like Jeff Koons' "Rabbit" ($91.1M).
- Speculative drivers: Fueled by FOMO, crypto bull run (Ethereum highs), celebrity/influencer buzz, and perceptions of NFTs as revolutionary assets. Both sales occurred amid massive retail participation and media coverage.
- Post-crash reality: Secondary market values collapsed. Neither has approached original hype levels in resales. The NFT market matured into niche/utility focus (e.g., access, communities), but pure speculative art like these suffered most.
- Cultural impact: They symbolize the 2021 "NFT gold rush" — "Everydays" mainstreamed NFTs; "The Merge" innovated mass participation/scalability.
- Sale format and structure:
- Everydays: Traditional single-lot auction (one unique NFT/collage to one buyer, Vignesh Sundaresan/MetaKovan). A monumental collage of 5,000 daily digital images Beeple (Mike Winkelmann) created over 13+ years — a personal artistic diary showcasing evolution from crude sketches to polished works.
- The Merge: Open-edition "mass" system on Nifty Gateway (28,983 buyers purchased 312,686 "mass units" over 48 hours, starting ~$299–$575 escalating). Units "merged" on-chain into dynamic, evolving NFTs per owner (more mass = larger/more complex visual). Not one artwork, but a distributed, participatory experiment tied to Ethereum's Merge event.
- Artistic concept:
- Everydays: Narrative-driven, autobiographical — a time-lapse of one artist's daily practice, emphasizing persistence, growth, and internet culture commentary.
- The Merge: Conceptual/experimental — gamified ownership, mass accumulation, and blockchain-native evolution (visuals grow with holdings). More about collective participation and scarcity mechanics than a singular "masterpiece."
- Peak valuation context:
- "Everydays" ($69.3M) was a single high-profile bid frenzy.
- "The Merge" ($91.8M aggregate) achieved its total through volume (thousands of buyers), sparking debates on whether it counts as "one artwork" vs. many.
- Current status (February 2026):
- Everydays: Remains a single, unique NFT held by the original buyer (no public resale). No confirmed recent transaction; estimates from market sentiment and lack of activity suggest perceived value has crashed to under $100 (or low thousands at best in hypothetical resale), down ~99%+ from peak. It's iconic but illiquid/static.
- The Merge: Collection of 20,663–20,700 individual merged NFTs (held by ~8,200–8,300 owners). Floor price hovers at 0.020–0.025 ETH ($40–$50 USD, depending on ETH $2,000–$2,500 range). 24h volume minimal (fractions of ETH); market cap low ($400K–$1M). Down 90%+ from hype-era implied values, but more liquid/tradable than the singular Everydays.
Like the sports card surge (e.g., LeBron RPA $5.2M peak → sharp drops but blue-chip resilience), both NFTs epitomize hype-driven peaks followed by corrections. However, NFTs/digital art crashed harder and recovered slower due to intangibility, crypto dependency, and lack of "provenance nostalgia" (vs. physical cards' tangibility/grading). "Everydays" mirrors ultra-rare, singular items (like Brady's /100 Contenders) — prestige but low liquidity post-bubble. "The Merge" echoes fractional/mass participation trends (like modern parallels in cards) but suffered similar fate.In 2026, both are historical landmarks rather than liquid assets: "Everydays" as the breakthrough single-piece sale, "The Merge" as the innovative collective experiment. They highlight how 2021 euphoria valued novelty and speculation over sustained utility, with current low floors reflecting maturation (or decline) in pure digital art NFTs.
2021 Bored Apes NFT by Yuga Labs
2021 SOLD for $ 24.4M by Sotheby's
The CryptoPunks by LarvaLabs have opened the way to new entertainment. Incorporated in 2021, YugaLabs adds a social application by which an element is also the digital membership card of a club that offers collaborative actions such as decorating a board.
Two series are starting the new process : Bore Ape Yacht Club and Bore Ape Kennel Club. Each of them is made of 10,000 NFT supported digital images, released on the Ethereum blockchain. The dogs had originally been released for a free adoption.
All of them are unique. As for the CryptoPunks but in a much higher variety and size, all elements match a same matrix. They vary in background, clothes, earring, eyes, fur, hat and mouth for the apes in bust portraits, for a total of 170 traits. For the dogs, clothes, earring and hat are superseded by back, head, neck and feet. Most apes are bored throughout a few variants but rarer expressions from rage to jovial are also included.
A set of 101 of each series was sold online by Sotheby's on September 9, 2021. The Yacht Club was sold for $ 24.4M from a lower estimate of $ 12M, lot 1. The Kennel Club was sold for $ 1.84M, lot 2.
Relying on Bored Apes NFT by Yuga Labs, sold by Sotheby's on September 9, 2021, lots 1 and 2, describe the evolution of NFT-supported digital series from CryptoPunks to Bored Apes.
The evolution of NFT-supported digital series, particularly profile picture (PFP) projects, traces a path from pioneering experiments in digital scarcity and ownership to sophisticated community-driven ecosystems with real-world utilities and cultural influence. This progression is exemplified by the shift from CryptoPunks, one of the earliest NFT collections, to the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) by Yuga Labs, which elevated the format into a mainstream phenomenon.
CryptoPunks, created by Larva Labs in June 2017, marked the genesis of algorithmic generative art as NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain. Consisting of 10,000 unique 24x24 pixel art characters—each with randomized traits like accessories, hairstyles, and backgrounds—the project was initially distributed for free (claimable via gas fees) and predated the widespread adoption of the ERC-721 token standard, which formalized non-fungible tokens. As one of the first "blue-chip" NFT collections, CryptoPunks demonstrated the viability of blockchain for verifying provenance and rarity in digital art, sparking early speculation and community interest. They evolved from niche curiosities among crypto enthusiasts to valuable assets, with secondary market sales soaring as awareness grew—paving the way for PFPs as digital identities and status symbols on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter). However, their utility was largely limited to collectibility and resale value, with no built-in community perks or intellectual property (IP) rights for owners at launch.
Building on this foundation, the Bored Ape Yacht Club launched in April 2021 as a 10,000-piece collection of cartoonish ape avatars, each algorithmically generated with varying traits such as fur color, clothing, and expressions, minted on Ethereum for an initial price of 0.08 ETH (around $200 at the time). Yuga Labs, the anonymous team behind BAYC, drew inspiration from CryptoPunks' generative model but innovated by infusing social and experiential elements, transforming PFPs from static collectibles into gateways for exclusive communities. Owners received full commercial IP rights to their apes, enabling monetization through merchandise, branding, and collaborations—features absent in early projects like CryptoPunks. BAYC also introduced utilities like access to virtual "yacht club" events, airdrops of companion collections (e.g., Mutant Ape Yacht Club and Bored Ape Kennel Club), and real-world perks such as celebrity-backed parties and metaverse integrations, fostering a sense of belonging and long-term value beyond speculation. This evolution amplified the PFP craze, turning NFTs into cultural icons adopted by celebrities like Eminem and Snoop Dogg, and driving billions in trading volume during the 2021 bull market.
A key milestone in this trajectory was Sotheby's "Ape In!" auction on September 9, 2021, which featured BAYC prominently and underscored the mainstream art world's embrace of NFTs. Lot 1 comprised 101 Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs, selling for $24,393,000—far exceeding the $12-18 million estimate—while lot 2 consisted of 101 Bored Ape Kennel Club NFTs (a dog-themed companion series airdropped to BAYC holders), fetching $1,835,000. This sale not only validated BAYC's blue-chip status but also highlighted the maturation of NFT series: from CryptoPunks' grassroots origins to BAYC's polished, utility-rich model that blended art, technology, and social capital. Post-launch, BAYC's innovations influenced subsequent projects, shifting the sector toward memberships, nodes, and real-world asset integrations, though market volatility later tempered the hype.
Two series are starting the new process : Bore Ape Yacht Club and Bore Ape Kennel Club. Each of them is made of 10,000 NFT supported digital images, released on the Ethereum blockchain. The dogs had originally been released for a free adoption.
All of them are unique. As for the CryptoPunks but in a much higher variety and size, all elements match a same matrix. They vary in background, clothes, earring, eyes, fur, hat and mouth for the apes in bust portraits, for a total of 170 traits. For the dogs, clothes, earring and hat are superseded by back, head, neck and feet. Most apes are bored throughout a few variants but rarer expressions from rage to jovial are also included.
A set of 101 of each series was sold online by Sotheby's on September 9, 2021. The Yacht Club was sold for $ 24.4M from a lower estimate of $ 12M, lot 1. The Kennel Club was sold for $ 1.84M, lot 2.
Relying on Bored Apes NFT by Yuga Labs, sold by Sotheby's on September 9, 2021, lots 1 and 2, describe the evolution of NFT-supported digital series from CryptoPunks to Bored Apes.
The evolution of NFT-supported digital series, particularly profile picture (PFP) projects, traces a path from pioneering experiments in digital scarcity and ownership to sophisticated community-driven ecosystems with real-world utilities and cultural influence. This progression is exemplified by the shift from CryptoPunks, one of the earliest NFT collections, to the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) by Yuga Labs, which elevated the format into a mainstream phenomenon.
CryptoPunks, created by Larva Labs in June 2017, marked the genesis of algorithmic generative art as NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain. Consisting of 10,000 unique 24x24 pixel art characters—each with randomized traits like accessories, hairstyles, and backgrounds—the project was initially distributed for free (claimable via gas fees) and predated the widespread adoption of the ERC-721 token standard, which formalized non-fungible tokens. As one of the first "blue-chip" NFT collections, CryptoPunks demonstrated the viability of blockchain for verifying provenance and rarity in digital art, sparking early speculation and community interest. They evolved from niche curiosities among crypto enthusiasts to valuable assets, with secondary market sales soaring as awareness grew—paving the way for PFPs as digital identities and status symbols on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter). However, their utility was largely limited to collectibility and resale value, with no built-in community perks or intellectual property (IP) rights for owners at launch.
Building on this foundation, the Bored Ape Yacht Club launched in April 2021 as a 10,000-piece collection of cartoonish ape avatars, each algorithmically generated with varying traits such as fur color, clothing, and expressions, minted on Ethereum for an initial price of 0.08 ETH (around $200 at the time). Yuga Labs, the anonymous team behind BAYC, drew inspiration from CryptoPunks' generative model but innovated by infusing social and experiential elements, transforming PFPs from static collectibles into gateways for exclusive communities. Owners received full commercial IP rights to their apes, enabling monetization through merchandise, branding, and collaborations—features absent in early projects like CryptoPunks. BAYC also introduced utilities like access to virtual "yacht club" events, airdrops of companion collections (e.g., Mutant Ape Yacht Club and Bored Ape Kennel Club), and real-world perks such as celebrity-backed parties and metaverse integrations, fostering a sense of belonging and long-term value beyond speculation. This evolution amplified the PFP craze, turning NFTs into cultural icons adopted by celebrities like Eminem and Snoop Dogg, and driving billions in trading volume during the 2021 bull market.
A key milestone in this trajectory was Sotheby's "Ape In!" auction on September 9, 2021, which featured BAYC prominently and underscored the mainstream art world's embrace of NFTs. Lot 1 comprised 101 Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs, selling for $24,393,000—far exceeding the $12-18 million estimate—while lot 2 consisted of 101 Bored Ape Kennel Club NFTs (a dog-themed companion series airdropped to BAYC holders), fetching $1,835,000. This sale not only validated BAYC's blue-chip status but also highlighted the maturation of NFT series: from CryptoPunks' grassroots origins to BAYC's polished, utility-rich model that blended art, technology, and social capital. Post-launch, BAYC's innovations influenced subsequent projects, shifting the sector toward memberships, nodes, and real-world asset integrations, though market volatility later tempered the hype.
Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) is one of the most iconic and influential NFT collections in history, often credited with mainstreaming profile picture (PFP) NFTs, celebrity adoption, and Web3 culture during the 2021–2022 boom. Launched by Yuga Labs on April 30, 2021, it features 10,000 unique, algorithmically generated cartoon apes on the Ethereum blockchain (ERC-721 standard). Each ape was initially minted for 0.08 ETH (~$190–$200 at the time) and sold out in hours.
Historical Context and COVID-Era Bubble
BAYC exploded during the NFT frenzy:
Post-Bubble Correction and Current Status (February 18, 2026)
Like the broader NFT digital art crash (90%+ volume drops), BAYC has declined sharply from peaks:
Rarity Traits
BAYC apes are generated from over 170 possible traits across 7 categories (background, clothes, earrings, eyes, fur, hat, mouth). Rarity is driven by trait scarcity, combinations, and aesthetics—no fixed "types" like CryptoPunks (all apes, but fur/skin variations matter hugely).
Key rarity drivers:
Historical Context and COVID-Era Bubble
BAYC exploded during the NFT frenzy:
- Peak hype (2021–2022): Floor price hit an all-time high of ~128–145 ETH (around $350,000–$420,000 USD) in May 2022. Individual sales reached millions (e.g., one at over $3.4M at Sotheby's in 2021). Celebrity owners included Justin Bieber, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Steph Curry, Jimmy Fallon, and others, boosting status-symbol appeal.
- Perks and ecosystem: Owners gained exclusive access (private Discord, events, merchandise), plus spin-offs like Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC), Bored Ape Kennel Club (dogs), ApeCoin (governance token), and metaverse projects (e.g., Otherside). Yuga Labs was valued at ~$4B in 2022.
- It symbolized the NFT bubble's excess: community, utility (beyond art), and speculation drove massive FOMO.
Post-Bubble Correction and Current Status (February 18, 2026)
Like the broader NFT digital art crash (90%+ volume drops), BAYC has declined sharply from peaks:
- Current floor price: Approximately 6.10 ETH (~$12,200 USD, based on ETH ~$2,000 range). This is down ~90–95% from the 2022 high (in USD terms) and represents a low not seen since early 2021 in some metrics.
- Market cap: Around 61,000 ETH (~$122 million USD total for the collection).
- 24h volume: Low but active (e.g., ~18–33 ETH / ~$36K–$66K recently).
- Owners: ~5,625–5,626 unique holders (out of ~9,998–10,000 minted).
- Recent trends: Monthly sales in the low millions USD (e.g., February 2026 partial data shows ongoing but subdued activity). Celebrity-owned apes (e.g., Bieber's) now bid near floor (~$12K), reflecting near-total wipeouts from peak buys ($1M+).
- Resilience factors: Still ranks #2 in many NFT trackers (behind CryptoPunks in some metrics); utility (IP rights for owners, events, ApeCoin ecosystem) provides more staying power than pure art NFTs like Pak's "The Merge" (floors ~$40–$50) or Beeple's singular piece (illiquid/low value).
Rarity Traits
BAYC apes are generated from over 170 possible traits across 7 categories (background, clothes, earrings, eyes, fur, hat, mouth). Rarity is driven by trait scarcity, combinations, and aesthetics—no fixed "types" like CryptoPunks (all apes, but fur/skin variations matter hugely).
Key rarity drivers:
- Fur/skin — Often the most decisive (e.g., Solid Gold Fur in ~46 apes — ultra-rare premium).
- Rare traits (lowest counts, highest premiums):
- Bored Unshaven Pizza (mouth): ~26 apes.
- Bored Unshaven Dagger (mouth): ~28.
- Black Suit (clothes): ~42.
- Solid Gold Fur: ~46.
- Other notables: Rare hats (e.g., certain crowns/helmets), eyes (e.g., cyborg/laser), mouths (e.g., pizza/dagger combos).
- Trait count — Most have 4–7 traits; extreme combos boost value.
- Tools like rarity calculators (e.g., bayc.coolrarity.com or rarity.tools) score based on frequency—sub-1% traits trade at multiples of floor, but premiums taper off sharply beyond that.
Yuga Labs CryptoPunks acquisition
In the context of NFT-supported digital series evolving from CryptoPunks to Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), a pivotal development occurred on March 11, 2022, when Yuga Labs—the creators of BAYC—acquired the intellectual property (IP) rights to the CryptoPunks and Meebits collections from their original developers, Larva Labs. This move consolidated two of the most iconic and valuable NFT projects under one umbrella, effectively bridging the pioneering, grassroots era of CryptoPunks (launched in 2017 as one of the first generative PFP collections) with the more utility-focused, community-driven model popularized by BAYC in 2021. The acquisition was not just a financial transaction but a strategic alignment: Yuga Labs committed to granting full commercial IP rights to CryptoPunks holders, mirroring BAYC's approach where owners could monetize their assets through merchandise, branding, and collaborations—a feature CryptoPunks initially lacked. This shift aimed to revitalize the CryptoPunks community, which had seen waning engagement, by infusing it with BAYC-style perks like events and expansions. However, the deal sparked controversy in the NFT space, with some viewing it as a "hostile takeover" that diluted CryptoPunks' punk ethos, while others saw it as a necessary evolution to sustain the project's relevance amid market maturation.
Post-acquisition, Yuga Labs managed CryptoPunks for over three years, during which the broader NFT market experienced volatility, including a downturn in 2022-2023 followed by stabilization. On May 13, 2025, Yuga Labs transferred the full IP rights of CryptoPunks to the Infinite Node Foundation—a newly formed non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and advancing the collection's cultural legacy—for approximately $20 million. This handoff was framed as a stewardship move rather than a outright sale, with Yuga Labs retaining a significant stake in NODE while stepping back from direct control to focus on its core BAYC ecosystem and other ventures. The foundation, led by figures committed to digital art's history, aims to honor CryptoPunks' origins by fostering community governance, artistic collaborations, and long-term preservation, signaling a further maturation of NFT projects toward decentralized, non-profit models. As of early 2026, this transition has been largely positively received, potentially setting a precedent for how legacy NFT collections adapt in a post-hype era.
In the context of NFT-supported digital series evolving from CryptoPunks to Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), a pivotal development occurred on March 11, 2022, when Yuga Labs—the creators of BAYC—acquired the intellectual property (IP) rights to the CryptoPunks and Meebits collections from their original developers, Larva Labs. This move consolidated two of the most iconic and valuable NFT projects under one umbrella, effectively bridging the pioneering, grassroots era of CryptoPunks (launched in 2017 as one of the first generative PFP collections) with the more utility-focused, community-driven model popularized by BAYC in 2021. The acquisition was not just a financial transaction but a strategic alignment: Yuga Labs committed to granting full commercial IP rights to CryptoPunks holders, mirroring BAYC's approach where owners could monetize their assets through merchandise, branding, and collaborations—a feature CryptoPunks initially lacked. This shift aimed to revitalize the CryptoPunks community, which had seen waning engagement, by infusing it with BAYC-style perks like events and expansions. However, the deal sparked controversy in the NFT space, with some viewing it as a "hostile takeover" that diluted CryptoPunks' punk ethos, while others saw it as a necessary evolution to sustain the project's relevance amid market maturation.
Post-acquisition, Yuga Labs managed CryptoPunks for over three years, during which the broader NFT market experienced volatility, including a downturn in 2022-2023 followed by stabilization. On May 13, 2025, Yuga Labs transferred the full IP rights of CryptoPunks to the Infinite Node Foundation—a newly formed non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and advancing the collection's cultural legacy—for approximately $20 million. This handoff was framed as a stewardship move rather than a outright sale, with Yuga Labs retaining a significant stake in NODE while stepping back from direct control to focus on its core BAYC ecosystem and other ventures. The foundation, led by figures committed to digital art's history, aims to honor CryptoPunks' origins by fostering community governance, artistic collaborations, and long-term preservation, signaling a further maturation of NFT projects toward decentralized, non-profit models. As of early 2026, this transition has been largely positively received, potentially setting a precedent for how legacy NFT collections adapt in a post-hype era.
2021 Landscape by Cui Ruzhuo
2022 SOLD for RMB 103M by Yongle
Landscape, ink and color on paper 222 x 196 cm painted in 2021 by Cui Ruzhuo, was sold for RMB 103M by Yongle on July 25, 2022.
It features a mountain range at a sea shore, with an island topped by a steeple.
It features a mountain range at a sea shore, with an island topped by a steeple.
2021 The De Beers Cullinan Blue by Diacore
2022 SOLD for HK$ 450M by Sotheby's
The De Beers Blue, a fancy vivid blue weighing 15.10 carats, is the largest vivid blue made available at auction and the largest internally flawless step cut diamond graded by the GIA. Its stone of about 40 carats has been extracted in 2021 by De Beers in their Cullinan mine.
It is bigger and clearer than the rectangular cut VVS1 14.62 carat Oppenheimer Blue, sold for CHF 57M by Christie's on May 18, 2016. It has the same internally flawless clarity as the cushion cut 12.03 carats of the Blue Moon, remarkable for its 20 second phosphorescent effect after exposure to UV light, sold for CHF 49M by Sotheby's on November 11, 2015.
The step cut, rectangular cut and emerald cut are the best suited to display the perfection of the gem, revealing any defect without pity and displaying the color in its evenly saturated beauty while optimizing the light reflection.
This masterwork of nature and craftsmanship was sold for HK$ 450M by Sotheby's in Hong Kong on April 27, 2022, lot 1800. Its $3.8 million per-carat value, surpassing the prior benchmark set by the 2015 Oppenheimer Blue, is driven by boron impurities that tint only 0.02% of diamonds blue.
The De Beers Cullinan Blue diamond, a rare Type IIb fancy vivid blue gem, has a relatively short but notable history tied to one of the world's most famous diamond mines.
Discovery and Mining
The diamond originated from a 39.34-carat rough stone unearthed in April 2021 at the Cullinan Mine in South Africa, operated by Petra Diamonds. The Cullinan Mine, discovered in 1902 and named after its founder Thomas Cullinan, has a storied past as the source of the world's largest rough diamond ever found—the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond in 1905, which was later cut into pieces for the British Crown Jewels. The mine is one of the few global sources for blue diamonds, which form due to trace amounts of boron in their crystal structure, and has produced other notable blues over the decades. Petra Diamonds, which acquired the mine from De Beers in 2008, certified this rough as conflict-free under the Kimberley Process.
Acquisition and Cutting
Shortly after discovery, the rough was acquired by a partnership between De Beers Group and master diamond manufacturer Diacore for an undisclosed sum (reported in some sources as around $40 million). Diacore, known for handling exceptional stones, spent nearly a year meticulously studying, cutting, and polishing the rough into a 15.10-carat step-cut rectangular diamond. This process involved significant risk due to the stone's rarity and value, with the final polish emphasizing its intense color and clarity. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) graded it as Fancy Vivid Blue (the highest color grade for blues, given to less than 1% of submissions), Internally Flawless, and Type IIb—making it the largest such step-cut vivid blue ever graded by the GIA and the largest vivid blue to appear at auction.
Auction and Sale
Named the De Beers Cullinan Blue in honor of its mine and the De Beers collaboration, the diamond was unveiled in February 2022 and toured globally (including stops in New York, London, Dubai, and Asia) before its standalone auction at Sotheby's Magnificent Jewels sale in Hong Kong on April 27, 2022. Estimated at over $48 million, it sold after intense bidding for HK$450,925,000 (approximately US$57.47 million) to an anonymous private collector via telephone. This set a new record for the highest price per carat for a blue diamond at about $3.8 million, surpassing the previous benchmark held by the 12.03-carat Blue Moon of Josephine (sold for $48.5 million in 2015). It fell just short of the overall record for a vivid blue diamond, held by the 14.62-carat Oppenheimer Blue ($57.54 million in 2016).
Post-Sale History and Controversies
Since the 2022 sale, there have been no public updates on the diamond's ownership, resale, or current location as of January 2026—it remains in private hands with no reported exhibitions or further auctions. The diamond's history is not without ethical scrutiny: While certified conflict-free, its association with De Beers has drawn criticism due to the company's historical role in South Africa's diamond industry during apartheid, including labor exploitation and market monopolization. However, the Cullinan Mine's modern operations under Petra emphasize sustainable practices, and blue diamonds like this one represent less than 0.01% of global production, underscoring their geological rarity.
This diamond exemplifies the enduring allure of blue gems, with historical parallels to famous blues like the Hope Diamond (cut from the 17th-century Tavernier Blue).
It is bigger and clearer than the rectangular cut VVS1 14.62 carat Oppenheimer Blue, sold for CHF 57M by Christie's on May 18, 2016. It has the same internally flawless clarity as the cushion cut 12.03 carats of the Blue Moon, remarkable for its 20 second phosphorescent effect after exposure to UV light, sold for CHF 49M by Sotheby's on November 11, 2015.
The step cut, rectangular cut and emerald cut are the best suited to display the perfection of the gem, revealing any defect without pity and displaying the color in its evenly saturated beauty while optimizing the light reflection.
This masterwork of nature and craftsmanship was sold for HK$ 450M by Sotheby's in Hong Kong on April 27, 2022, lot 1800. Its $3.8 million per-carat value, surpassing the prior benchmark set by the 2015 Oppenheimer Blue, is driven by boron impurities that tint only 0.02% of diamonds blue.
The De Beers Cullinan Blue diamond, a rare Type IIb fancy vivid blue gem, has a relatively short but notable history tied to one of the world's most famous diamond mines.
Discovery and Mining
The diamond originated from a 39.34-carat rough stone unearthed in April 2021 at the Cullinan Mine in South Africa, operated by Petra Diamonds. The Cullinan Mine, discovered in 1902 and named after its founder Thomas Cullinan, has a storied past as the source of the world's largest rough diamond ever found—the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond in 1905, which was later cut into pieces for the British Crown Jewels. The mine is one of the few global sources for blue diamonds, which form due to trace amounts of boron in their crystal structure, and has produced other notable blues over the decades. Petra Diamonds, which acquired the mine from De Beers in 2008, certified this rough as conflict-free under the Kimberley Process.
Acquisition and Cutting
Shortly after discovery, the rough was acquired by a partnership between De Beers Group and master diamond manufacturer Diacore for an undisclosed sum (reported in some sources as around $40 million). Diacore, known for handling exceptional stones, spent nearly a year meticulously studying, cutting, and polishing the rough into a 15.10-carat step-cut rectangular diamond. This process involved significant risk due to the stone's rarity and value, with the final polish emphasizing its intense color and clarity. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) graded it as Fancy Vivid Blue (the highest color grade for blues, given to less than 1% of submissions), Internally Flawless, and Type IIb—making it the largest such step-cut vivid blue ever graded by the GIA and the largest vivid blue to appear at auction.
Auction and Sale
Named the De Beers Cullinan Blue in honor of its mine and the De Beers collaboration, the diamond was unveiled in February 2022 and toured globally (including stops in New York, London, Dubai, and Asia) before its standalone auction at Sotheby's Magnificent Jewels sale in Hong Kong on April 27, 2022. Estimated at over $48 million, it sold after intense bidding for HK$450,925,000 (approximately US$57.47 million) to an anonymous private collector via telephone. This set a new record for the highest price per carat for a blue diamond at about $3.8 million, surpassing the previous benchmark held by the 12.03-carat Blue Moon of Josephine (sold for $48.5 million in 2015). It fell just short of the overall record for a vivid blue diamond, held by the 14.62-carat Oppenheimer Blue ($57.54 million in 2016).
Post-Sale History and Controversies
Since the 2022 sale, there have been no public updates on the diamond's ownership, resale, or current location as of January 2026—it remains in private hands with no reported exhibitions or further auctions. The diamond's history is not without ethical scrutiny: While certified conflict-free, its association with De Beers has drawn criticism due to the company's historical role in South Africa's diamond industry during apartheid, including labor exploitation and market monopolization. However, the Cullinan Mine's modern operations under Petra emphasize sustainable practices, and blue diamonds like this one represent less than 0.01% of global production, underscoring their geological rarity.
This diamond exemplifies the enduring allure of blue gems, with historical parallels to famous blues like the Hope Diamond (cut from the 17th-century Tavernier Blue).
At 15.10 carats, the rare @debeersgroup Cullinan Blue Diamond is the largest vivid blue diamond ever to appear at auction and the largest internally flawless step cut vivid blue diamond that the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has ever graded. https://t.co/7Ch6cfAN8r pic.twitter.com/yscMNqGC1l
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) February 16, 2022
2021 The Williamson Pink Star
2022 SOLD for HK$ 450M by Sotheby's
The open pit Williamson diamond mine was discovered in 1940 in Tanganyika, later Tanzania, by its namesake first owner. Locally known as the Mwadui mine, it is one of the best diamond mines outside of South Africa.
The Williamson is famous for its high quality pink diamonds. A virtually flawless pink cut down to 23.6 carats was presented in 1947 by Williamson to Princess Elizabeth at her wedding with Prince Philip. Assembled by Cartier as the centre of a jonquil shaped brooch, it was frequently pinned on Her Majesty's coat.
On October 7, 2022, Sotheby's sold for HK $ 450M the Williamson Pink Star, lot 1115, which is $ 5M per carat. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Strongly saturated, it is referred by the auction house as one of the purest and pinkest diamonds. Weighing 11.15 carats, it is the second biggest internally flawless fancy vivid pink ever listed at auction. It was cushion cut by Diacore from a 32 carat rough diamond found at the Williamson mine.
It is assembled on a 18 karat white and pink gold ring in a surrounding of small pink and white diamonds.
History of the Williamson Pink Star
The Williamson Pink Star is an exceptional 11.15-carat cushion-shaped Fancy Vivid Pink diamond, graded by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) with the highest color saturation for pink diamonds, Internally Flawless clarity, and classified as Type IIa for its chemical purity and lack of nitrogen impurities. Its vivid pink hue—often described as "bubblegum" pink—arises from plastic deformation in the crystal lattice during formation, a rare phenomenon with no confirmed trace elements like manganese involved, contrary to early theories. Among pink diamonds, which represent fewer than 5% of colored diamonds (themselves less than 3% of all diamonds graded by GIA), those exceeding 10 carats with Fancy Vivid grading are extraordinarily scarce; of 1,000 pink diamonds examined by GIA between 2008 and 2016, 83% weighed under 1 carat.
The diamond originates from the Williamson mine (also known as the Mwadui mine) in Tanzania, discovered in 1940 by Canadian geologist Dr. John Thorburn Williamson. This alluvial deposit became renowned for producing high-quality pink diamonds, including the historic 23.6-carat Williamson Pink diamond—a 54.5-carat rough cut into a round brilliant and presented by Williamson as a wedding gift to then-Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II) in 1947. The mine, Tanzania's first diamond operation and still active under Petra Diamonds' ownership since 2009, has yielded over 19 million carats total, though large pink roughs remain rare.
The Williamson Pink Star began as a 32.32-carat rough unearthed at the Williamson mine (exact discovery date undisclosed in public records). It was acquired and meticulously cut by Diacore (formerly the Steinmetz Diamond Group), a leading diamond manufacturer known for handling exceptional colored stones, including the Pink Star. The cutting process, which reduced the rough by more than 65% to enhance color saturation and achieve flawless clarity, resulted in the final 11.15-carat cushion mixed-cut form. GIA experts have praised it as "among the rarest of all gemstones," noting the need for an inherently strong body color in the rough to attain Fancy Vivid grading at this size, combined with its Internally Flawless clarity—a "special combination." Prior to its auction debut, the diamond remained in private hands with no documented public exhibitions or ownership changes, though its name honors the Williamson mine's legacy. It headlined a single-lot auction at Sotheby's Hong Kong on October 5, 2022, amid high anticipation in a market favoring rare colored diamonds. Bidding, conducted live with telephone and online participants, lasted about two minutes and culminated in a hammer price of HK$453.2 million (approximately $57.7 million USD), including fees, to an anonymous private collector advised by Sotheby's in Boca Raton, Florida. This sale established a new world auction record for the price per carat of any diamond, jewel, or gemstone at over $5.18 million per carat, surpassing previous benchmarks like the Winston Pink Legacy ($50.3 million for 18.96 carats in 2018) while ranking as the second-most valuable jewel ever auctioned, behind the CTF Pink Star ($71.2 million in 2017).
As of January 2026, the Williamson Pink Star remains in the anonymous buyer's private collection, with no subsequent auctions, exhibitions, or ownership transfers reported, solidifying its status among iconic pink diamonds like the Darya-i-Nur, Noor-ul-Ain, and Agra.
The Williamson Pink Star diamond was cut and polished by Diacore in 2022, following the company's purchase of the 32.32-carat rough in December 2021. (Note that an earlier reference in some sources to it being cut in 1947 appears to be a confusion with the separate Williamson Pink diamond gifted to Queen Elizabeth II.)
Its earliest public appearance was on August 31, 2022, when Sotheby's unveiled it in London as part of the pre-auction tour.
The Williamson is famous for its high quality pink diamonds. A virtually flawless pink cut down to 23.6 carats was presented in 1947 by Williamson to Princess Elizabeth at her wedding with Prince Philip. Assembled by Cartier as the centre of a jonquil shaped brooch, it was frequently pinned on Her Majesty's coat.
On October 7, 2022, Sotheby's sold for HK $ 450M the Williamson Pink Star, lot 1115, which is $ 5M per carat. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Strongly saturated, it is referred by the auction house as one of the purest and pinkest diamonds. Weighing 11.15 carats, it is the second biggest internally flawless fancy vivid pink ever listed at auction. It was cushion cut by Diacore from a 32 carat rough diamond found at the Williamson mine.
It is assembled on a 18 karat white and pink gold ring in a surrounding of small pink and white diamonds.
History of the Williamson Pink Star
The Williamson Pink Star is an exceptional 11.15-carat cushion-shaped Fancy Vivid Pink diamond, graded by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) with the highest color saturation for pink diamonds, Internally Flawless clarity, and classified as Type IIa for its chemical purity and lack of nitrogen impurities. Its vivid pink hue—often described as "bubblegum" pink—arises from plastic deformation in the crystal lattice during formation, a rare phenomenon with no confirmed trace elements like manganese involved, contrary to early theories. Among pink diamonds, which represent fewer than 5% of colored diamonds (themselves less than 3% of all diamonds graded by GIA), those exceeding 10 carats with Fancy Vivid grading are extraordinarily scarce; of 1,000 pink diamonds examined by GIA between 2008 and 2016, 83% weighed under 1 carat.
The diamond originates from the Williamson mine (also known as the Mwadui mine) in Tanzania, discovered in 1940 by Canadian geologist Dr. John Thorburn Williamson. This alluvial deposit became renowned for producing high-quality pink diamonds, including the historic 23.6-carat Williamson Pink diamond—a 54.5-carat rough cut into a round brilliant and presented by Williamson as a wedding gift to then-Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II) in 1947. The mine, Tanzania's first diamond operation and still active under Petra Diamonds' ownership since 2009, has yielded over 19 million carats total, though large pink roughs remain rare.
The Williamson Pink Star began as a 32.32-carat rough unearthed at the Williamson mine (exact discovery date undisclosed in public records). It was acquired and meticulously cut by Diacore (formerly the Steinmetz Diamond Group), a leading diamond manufacturer known for handling exceptional colored stones, including the Pink Star. The cutting process, which reduced the rough by more than 65% to enhance color saturation and achieve flawless clarity, resulted in the final 11.15-carat cushion mixed-cut form. GIA experts have praised it as "among the rarest of all gemstones," noting the need for an inherently strong body color in the rough to attain Fancy Vivid grading at this size, combined with its Internally Flawless clarity—a "special combination." Prior to its auction debut, the diamond remained in private hands with no documented public exhibitions or ownership changes, though its name honors the Williamson mine's legacy. It headlined a single-lot auction at Sotheby's Hong Kong on October 5, 2022, amid high anticipation in a market favoring rare colored diamonds. Bidding, conducted live with telephone and online participants, lasted about two minutes and culminated in a hammer price of HK$453.2 million (approximately $57.7 million USD), including fees, to an anonymous private collector advised by Sotheby's in Boca Raton, Florida. This sale established a new world auction record for the price per carat of any diamond, jewel, or gemstone at over $5.18 million per carat, surpassing previous benchmarks like the Winston Pink Legacy ($50.3 million for 18.96 carats in 2018) while ranking as the second-most valuable jewel ever auctioned, behind the CTF Pink Star ($71.2 million in 2017).
As of January 2026, the Williamson Pink Star remains in the anonymous buyer's private collection, with no subsequent auctions, exhibitions, or ownership transfers reported, solidifying its status among iconic pink diamonds like the Darya-i-Nur, Noor-ul-Ain, and Agra.
The Williamson Pink Star diamond was cut and polished by Diacore in 2022, following the company's purchase of the 32.32-carat rough in December 2021. (Note that an earlier reference in some sources to it being cut in 1947 appears to be a confusion with the separate Williamson Pink diamond gifted to Queen Elizabeth II.)
Its earliest public appearance was on August 31, 2022, when Sotheby's unveiled it in London as part of the pre-auction tour.
One of the world’s purest pink diamonds to ever appear at auction – the 11.15ct “Williamson Pink Star”, estimated at US.$21m / HK$170m, has the potential to set a new per carat price record for a Fancy Vivid pink diamond in Hong Kong this October. https://t.co/8eLMVwQVkM pic.twitter.com/wU8oFqLJw8
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) September 2, 2022
2021 Patek Philippe
1
Desk Clock
2021 SOLD for CHF 9.5M by Christie's for OnlyWatch
Patek Philippe made a bang in the 2019 OnlyWatch charity auction with the unique example of the model 6300A-010 that fetched CHF 31M. It is derived from the Grandmaster Chime which is the most complicated wristwatch in their catalogue.
To go forward in 2021, the brand cleverly offered a clock that will not invite for a comparison with the 2019 entry.
This item is a modern version of an Art Déco desk clock made by them in 1923 for the demanding customer James Ward Packard which is kept in the Patek Philippe Museum. Henry Graves Jr managed to have a similar time piece. The Packard complicated clock was equipped with a perpetual calendar and moon phases with an eight-day power reserve. It is made of silver with solid-gold feet and inlays.
The OnlyWatch clock is the unique example of the 27001M-01 model. The angular shape with a hinged lid of this 165 x 125 x 76 mm instrument has no equivalent in the modern catalogues of the brand.
It features a perpetual calendar, moon phases, day-night indicator, week-number display and has a power reserve of 31 days and a precision rate of 1 second per day. The case and the cabinet are in sterling silver with vermeil decorative elements and American walnut inlays. In an additional exquisite refinement the dial is in a similar yellow gilt opaline hue as the 6300 of 2019.
The hammer was entrusted to Christie's on November 6, 2021. The Patek Philippe desk clock was sold for CHF 9.5M, lot 41. Please watch the video shared by Watch I love.
To go forward in 2021, the brand cleverly offered a clock that will not invite for a comparison with the 2019 entry.
This item is a modern version of an Art Déco desk clock made by them in 1923 for the demanding customer James Ward Packard which is kept in the Patek Philippe Museum. Henry Graves Jr managed to have a similar time piece. The Packard complicated clock was equipped with a perpetual calendar and moon phases with an eight-day power reserve. It is made of silver with solid-gold feet and inlays.
The OnlyWatch clock is the unique example of the 27001M-01 model. The angular shape with a hinged lid of this 165 x 125 x 76 mm instrument has no equivalent in the modern catalogues of the brand.
It features a perpetual calendar, moon phases, day-night indicator, week-number display and has a power reserve of 31 days and a precision rate of 1 second per day. The case and the cabinet are in sterling silver with vermeil decorative elements and American walnut inlays. In an additional exquisite refinement the dial is in a similar yellow gilt opaline hue as the 6300 of 2019.
The hammer was entrusted to Christie's on November 6, 2021. The Patek Philippe desk clock was sold for CHF 9.5M, lot 41. Please watch the video shared by Watch I love.
2
Nautilus
2021 SOLD for $ 6.5M by Phillips
The stainless steel 5711/1A Nautilus self winding waterproof wristwatch by Patek Philippe, launched in 2006, had become a symbol of sport chic for the watch lovers, with its elegantly simple dial design offered in a textured dark blue in the variant 010.
Its huge success with a reported 10 year waiting list had possibly been unexpected for the brand. With an argument of not encouraging speculation, they announced its termination in January 2021. Three months after this astonishing announcement, they relaunched a winning strategy by the release of the 5711/1A-014 with an olive green dial.
The new final steel version of the Nautilus 5711 is now the 5711/1A-018 scheduled to be produced in 170 pieces for celebrating the 170 years of the partnership across the Atlantic between Patek Philippe and Tiffany. The new dial color is the signature Tiffany robin egg blue. The markers and hands are in blackened white gold.
The 170 watches will be retailed by Tiffany, with the exception of the very first released example which was sold for $ 6.5M by Phillips on December 11, 2021, lot 1T, as a charity lot for the benefit of The Nature Conservancy environmental nonprofit. Please play the video shared by the auction house.
The Nautilus is also available in pink gold under the reference 5711/1R.
Its huge success with a reported 10 year waiting list had possibly been unexpected for the brand. With an argument of not encouraging speculation, they announced its termination in January 2021. Three months after this astonishing announcement, they relaunched a winning strategy by the release of the 5711/1A-014 with an olive green dial.
The new final steel version of the Nautilus 5711 is now the 5711/1A-018 scheduled to be produced in 170 pieces for celebrating the 170 years of the partnership across the Atlantic between Patek Philippe and Tiffany. The new dial color is the signature Tiffany robin egg blue. The markers and hands are in blackened white gold.
The 170 watches will be retailed by Tiffany, with the exception of the very first released example which was sold for $ 6.5M by Phillips on December 11, 2021, lot 1T, as a charity lot for the benefit of The Nature Conservancy environmental nonprofit. Please play the video shared by the auction house.
The Nautilus is also available in pink gold under the reference 5711/1R.
2020-2021 Belle's Turquoise by Marden
2023 SOLD for $ 9.8M by Christie's
Brice Marden completed in 1991 his pseudo-calligraphic Cold Mountain series. His quest for mingling graphic lyricism and color finds its achievement in 1996 with The Attendant series. The lines in bright pure colors are sinuous in a game of intersections that may evoke the works by de Kooning in the 1980s. The first opus, dated 1996-1999, was sold for $ 13.6M by Christie's on November 9, 2022, lot 39.
The artist did not depart thereafter from that style. With a lesser sinuosity of the lines over a turquoise ground, Belle's Turquoise is dated 2020-2021 when Marden was in his eighties. The lower part of the canvas includes a dripping on a white background in the style of Twombly's Bacchus.
This oil on canvas 244 x 183 cm was sold for $ 9.8M by Christie's on November 7, 2023, lot 17A.
The artist did not depart thereafter from that style. With a lesser sinuosity of the lines over a turquoise ground, Belle's Turquoise is dated 2020-2021 when Marden was in his eighties. The lower part of the canvas includes a dripping on a white background in the style of Twombly's Bacchus.
This oil on canvas 244 x 183 cm was sold for $ 9.8M by Christie's on November 7, 2023, lot 17A.
