Leonardo da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi,” considered by many to be the Holy Grail of the old masters, sold for a record $450,312,500 after 19 minutes of fierce bidding between two determined buyers on Wednesday night at Christie’s Auction House in New York City. The identity of the bidder was not provided by the auction house.
As cheers filled the room, bidding at times jumped in clips of $10 million to $20 million. The price includes a buyer’s premium in addition to the gavel price of $400 million. It is the most expensive work of art ever sold at auction.
