The painting, "Portrait of a Young Man Holding a Roundel" shatters the previous Botticelli auction record by nine times
Sandro Botticelli's Portrait of a Young Man Holding a Roundel, one of the finest portraits ever painted by a Renaissance artist was sold for a record-breaking US$92.2 million. A transatlantic bidding between Sotheby's representatives in New York and London took place but the prized painting went to an Asian collector.
The painting is just one of the three portraits left in private hands by the leading artist of the Italian Renaissance. Many know Botticelli for his famous Primavera and Birth of Venus.
The price the painting achieved makes it one of the most valuable portraits of any era ever sold but also the second most valuable Old Master painting ever sold for auction. It shattered previous Botticelli auction records by nine times.
See also: 7 Unmissable Paintings At The Hong Kong Museum Of Art's Botticelli Exhibition
"As fresh today as when he was painted 550 years ago, Botticelli’s Young Man has cast his spell over everyone who has seen him. While the price achieved is the second highest ever for an Old Master Painting, this is a work that transcends time and categories. Now we really do know the price of beauty," said George Wachter, Sotheby's co-chairman of Old Masters Painting Worldwide.
The sale also saw the highest number of participants ever seen in a Sotheby's live-streamed auction with 66% having registered online.
See also: Christo and Jeanne-Claude's Private Collection To be Offered at Auction in February 2021