The painting historically appraised as the most valuable in the world is Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, also known as La Gioconda. It holds the Guinness World Record for the highest insurance valuation for a painting — $100 million in 1962 (roughly $900 million in today’s dollars).
The work has been definitively identified as a portrait of the Italian noblewoman Lisa Gherardini, wife of Francesco del Giocondo. It is believed to have been painted between 1503 and 1506, although Leonardo may have continued working on it until 1519, the year he died. Shortly afterward the painting was acquired by King Francis I of France and has been the property of the French Republic ever since.
The original painting once had eyelashes and eyebrows, but according to Daniel Arasse’s hypothesis — confirmed by a spectrographic analysis in 2004 — the Mona Lisa’s brows and lashes were likely removed around the mid-16th century by an unknown hand, since upper-class women of that era often removed their eyebrows and eyelashes. It has been on permanent display at the Louvre Museum in Paris since 1797.
Our list, however, will focus on the most expensive artworks that have actually been sold — not the priceless museum pieces that aren’t for sale, like the Mona Lisa (estimated at $900 million). You may have wondered, “How much is the Mona Lisa worth?” Today we’ll explore that question and take a deep dive into the paintings that have fetched the highest prices at sale.
1. Salvator Mundi – $450 Million
Artwork: Salvator Mundi
Artist: Attributed in whole or in part to Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519)
Year Painted: 1500
Medium: Oil on walnut panel
Price Paid in 2017: $450 million (about 2.4 billion reais at today’s exchange rate)
Location: Department of Culture and Tourism, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
The Salvator Mundi (“Savior of the World” in Latin) is the most expensive painting ever sold. Dated to the year 1500, it is an oil painting on walnut wood depicting Jesus as the savior of the world. The work is attributed by many experts to Leonardo da Vinci, in whole or in part, or to one of his students, Bernardino Luini or Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio.
Description of the Artwork
The painting shows Jesus in Renaissance style, raising his right hand in blessing with crossed fingers, while holding a transparent crystal orb in his left hand.
Provenance
Salvator Mundi was possibly painted for Louis XII of France and his wife, Anne, Duchess of Brittany. It was likely commissioned shortly after the conquests of Milan and Genoa, around 1500. Later, it was owned by Charles I of England and kept in his private art collection in 1649, until it was auctioned in 1763 by the son of the Duke of Buckingham and Normandy.
Rediscovery and Restoration
The painting resurfaced in 1900, when it was bought by British collector Francis Cook, 1st Viscount of Monserrate. It had been damaged by earlier restoration attempts, and its authorship remained unclear. Cook’s descendants sold the work at auction in 1958 for only £45.
Recognition and Sale
Long overlooked, the painting reappeared in 2005, was restored, and went public in 2011 during an exhibition at the National Gallery in London. In May 2013, Swiss dealer Yves Bouvier bought it for just over $75 million in a private sale brokered by Sotheby’s New York. He then sold it to Russian collector Dmitry Rybolovlev for $127.5 million.
The Record-Breaking Sale and Current Whereabouts
On November 15, 2017, during an art auction, former owner Dmitry Rybolovlev sold Salvator Mundi at Christie’s New York for the record-breaking sum of $450 million (over 2.4 billion reais) to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Today, the painting belongs to the Department of Culture and Tourism of Abu Dhabi, though it is not open to general public display.
2. Interchange – $300 Million
Artwork: Interchange
Artist: Willem de Kooning (1904–1997)
Year Painted: 1955
Medium: Oil on canvas
Price Paid in 2015: $300 million (about 1.6 billion reais at today’s exchange rate)
Location: Private collection of Kenneth C. Griffin. Currently on loan and displayed at the Art Institute of Chicago, USA.
Description of the Artwork
Interchange is an abstract expressionist oil painting on canvas by Dutch-born American painter Willem de Kooning. Like Jackson Pollock, de Kooning was one of the pioneers of the Abstract Expressionist movement, the first major American modern art movement. Completed in 1955, the painting features a central fleshy pink mass, representing a seated woman.
Meaning of the Title
When naming his works, de Kooning often chose references tied to the area where he lived. Interchange refers to the central region of New York, where he resided at the time.
First Sale
The painting was originally sold by the artist in 1955 for $4,000 to architect Edgar Kaufmann Jr., whose father, Edgar J. Kaufmann, owned the Kaufmann department store in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Auction Sale and Price Record
Later, Kaufmann’s estate sold the painting, along with other works from his collection, at Sotheby’s New York in November 1989, during the Japanese asset price bubble, to Japanese art dealer Shigeki Kameyama, owner of the Mountain Tortoise Gallery in Tokyo, for $20.7 million, setting a record price for a work of art by a living artist.
Sale to David Geffen
The painting was sold a few years later to David Geffen, at a loss due to the collapse of the Japanese asset bubble and the early 1990s recession. Geffen purchased it for $20 million.
Final Sale and Record Value
In September 2015, the David Geffen Foundation sold the painting to Kenneth C. Griffin for $300 million (1.6 billion reais). This made it the second most expensive painting ever sold, surpassed only by Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi, which sold for $450.3 million in November 2017.
3. The Card Players – $250 Million
Artwork: The Card Players (Os Jogadores de Cartas)
Artist: Paul Cézanne (1839–1906)
Year Painted: 1892–1893
Medium: Oil on canvas
Price Paid in 2011: $250 million (about 1.3 billion reais at today’s exchange rate)
Location: Private collection, Qatar, Middle East
The Variants of “The Card Players”
This famous oil painting is one of five versions Paul Cézanne created between 1890 and 1895, all variations on the same theme: men sitting at a table playing cards. Cézanne studied this subject in great detail. Each version differed in the number of players, the setting of the game, and even the canvas size.
Exhibition of the Works
Most of the paintings from the series are now displayed in major art museums around the world, including the Courtauld Institute of Art in London, the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Record-Breaking Sale
One version, owned by Greek magnate George Embiricos, which depicts two French peasants playing cards, became the most expensive artwork ever sold at the time when it was purchased in 2011 by the Qatari Royal Family for $250 million.
4. Nafea Faa Ipoipo – $210 Million
Artwork: Nafea Faa Ipoipo (When Will You Marry?)
Artist: Paul Gauguin (1848–1903)
Year Painted: 1892
Medium: Oil on canvas
Price Paid in 2015: $210 million (about 1.2 billion reais at today’s exchange rate)
Location: Private collection, Qatar, Middle East
The Creation of Nafea Faa Ipoipo by Paul Gauguin
The French Post-Impressionist Paul Gauguin painted this work during his first trip to Tahiti (French Polynesia). In 1892, while on the island, Gauguin created Nafea Faa Ipoipo, which in Tahitian translates to the question: “When Will You Marry?”
Inspiration and Reality in Tahiti
Gauguin sought an exotic refuge in Tahiti, but upon arrival he found a land already colonized and Europeanized. Nevertheless, his works reflect the idealized culture he long fantasized about, blending paradisiacal landscapes with natives in traditional attire.
The Painting’s Rise in Value and Record Sale
Initially underappreciated, the painting sold for just seven francs after the artist’s death. Over time, however, its value skyrocketed. It was loaned to the Kunstmuseum Basel in Switzerland for nearly half a century, until it was sold in February 2015 by the Rudolf Staechelin family foundation to Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani of Qatar for $210 million. The painting remained on display at the Foundation Beyeler in Riehen, Switzerland, until June 28, 2015.
5. Number 17A – $200 Million
Artwork: Number 17A
Artist: Jackson Pollock (1912–1956)
Year Painted: 1948
Medium: Oil on fiberboard
Price Paid in 2015: $200 million (approximately 1 billion reais at today’s exchange rate)
Location: Private collection of Kenneth C. Griffin. Currently on loan and displayed at the Art Institute of Chicago, USA.
Acquisition of the Artwork
This 1948 painting by American Jackson Pollock was the second artwork acquired in a $500 million deal by hedge fund manager Kenneth C. Griffin with business billionaire David Geffen in September 2015. Griffin paid $300 million for Interchange and $200 million for this work, Number 17A, by the great Abstract Expressionist Jackson Pollock.
Description of the Painting
Painted in 1948, this stunning drip painting features a variety of bold colors, including yellow, red, blue, orange, along with touches of white and black. Like Interchange, visitors can also see this painting in person at the Art Institute of Chicago.
Technique and History
The painting is oil on fiberboard and is a drip painting, created by splattering paint onto a horizontal surface. It was painted a year after Jackson Pollock introduced his drip technique. The piece was featured in the August 1949 issue of Life magazine, which turned Pollock into a celebrity.
Final Note
These masterpieces are not just artistic expressions; they symbolize the intersection of history, culture, and investment. The extraordinary prices they have achieved reflect not only the genius of their creators but also the value humanity places on preserving art as a lasting legacy.