Record Breaking Auction Sales in 2021
2021 may have been the year of the NFT, but wealthy collectors still dropped plenty of cash on physical objects. This included the usual items like paintings and cars, as well as some more obscure ones like meteorites.
To gain insight into the world of rare collectibles, this infographic summarizes the biggest auction sales of 2021, spread across 12 different item categories.
The Numbers
The key details of these sales are listed below in tabular format. Some broke all-time records, while others set the record for 2021 specifically.
| Object | Category | Sale Price (USD) | Auction House |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pablo Picasso’s Femme assise près d’une fenêtre | Paintings | $103.4M | Christie’s |
| Final text of the United States Constitution | Printed texts | $43.2M | Sotheby’s |
| 15.81-carat Sakura diamond | Purple-pink diamonds | $29.3M | Christie’s |
| 1995 McLaren F1 | Automobiles | $20.5M | Gooding & Company |
| 1933 Double Eagle coin | Coins | $18.9M | Sotheby’s |
| The revolver used to kill Billy the Kid | Firearms | $6.0M | Bonhams |
| Grande et Petite Sonnerie | Watches | $5.3M | Phillips |
| 1993 Ron Arad “D-Sofa” | Furniture | $1.6M | Phillips |
| Pair of Michael Jordan’s Nike Air Ships | Shoes | $1.5M | Sotheby’s |
| Necklace featuring a 56.87-carat emerald | Emeralds | $1.0M | Phillips |
| 4.5B year old Fukang meteorite | Meteorites | $702K | Christie’s |
| Hermès Black Togo Birkin 35 | Handbags | $155K | Bonhams |
The Details
Here are some interesting facts and details about these rare collectibles, starting with:
Pablo Picasso’s Femme assise près d’une fenêtre (Marie-Thérèse)
This 1932 painting is a depiction of Picasso’s lover, Marie-Thérèse Walter (1909-1977). Walter is believed to have had a significant impact on Picasso’s work, (Read more...)