Leonardo da Vinci's painting sold for a record 450 million dollars

The 500-year-old painting "Savior of the World", which is believed to have been painted by da Vinci, sold at auction at Christie's auction house for $ 450,312,500.

Source: BBC

Leonardo da Vinci died in 1519. It is believed that less than twenty of his paintings have survived. "The Savior of the World", according to experts, was written after 1505 and is the only work of the artist that is in private hands.

The auction started with $ 100 million, the final bid was $ 400 million, and taking into account commission fees — more than 450 million. The auction lasted almost 20 minutes. The painting went to an anonymous buyer who participated in the auction by phone.

Researchers suggest that the canvas belonged to the English King Charles I for some time. The history of sales of the painting began in 1958. It was sold for only $60 because it was considered the creation of a da Vinci disciple. And in 2013, it was purchased by Russian billionaire collector Dmitry Rybolovlev for $ 127 million.

Until now, some experts have doubts about the authorship of the painting. Although the auction house Christie's insists that the painting is genuine.

450 million dollars is the highest price for a work of art among those sold both at auction and privately. The previous record belonged to Pablo Picasso's painting "Algerian Women", bought for 179 million also at Christie's auction.