Rare Leonardo da Vinci painting sells for record $450M
Leonardo da Vinci
CLOSE The last  Leonardo da Vinci  painting in private hands is going to auction at Christie's in New York for an estimated $100 million. Da Vinciâs depiction of Jesus  titled "Salvator Mundi " will be auctioned on Nov. 15. (Oct. 10) AP
Visitors to Christie's wait outside in a line to view Leonardo da Vinci's 'Salvator Mundi'  Tuesday  Nov. 14  2017. (Photo: Julie Jacobson  AP)
NEW YORK (AP) â  A painting of Christ by the Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci sold for a record $450 million (380 million euros) at auction on Wednesday   obliterating previous records for artworks sold at auction or privately.
 The painting   called "Salvator Mundi " Italian for "Savior of the World " is one of fewer than 20 paintings by  Leonardo  known to exist and the only one in private hands.  It  was sold by Christie's auction house  which didn't immediately identify the buyer.
Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece Salvator Mundi achieves $450 312 500  a #worldauctionrecord for any work of art sold at auction. pic.twitter.com/snKxm7t3cb â Christie's (@ChristiesInc) November 16  2017
The 26-inch-tall (66-centimeter-tall)  Leonardo  painting dates from around 1500 and shows Christ dressed in Renaissance-style robes  his right hand raised in blessing as his left hand holds a crystal sphere.
Its path from  Leonardo 's workshop to the auction block at Christie's was not smooth. Once owned by King Charles I of England  it disappeared from view until 1900  when it resurfaced and was acquired by a British collector. At that time it was attributed to a  Leonardo  disciple  rather than to the master himself.
The painting was sold again in 1958 and then acquired in 2005  badly damaged and partly painted-over  by a consortium of art dealers who paid less than $10 000 (8 445 euros). The art dealers restored the painting and documented its authenticity as a work by  Leonardo .
Christie's says most scholars agree that the painting is by  Leonardo   though some critics have questioned the attribution and some say the extensive restoration muddies the work's authorship.
Christie's capitalized on the public's interest in  Leonardo   considered one of the greatest artists of all time  with a media campaign that labeled the painting "The Last Da Vinci." The work was exhibited in Hong Kong  San Francisco  London and New York before the sale.
In New York  where no museum owns a  Leonardo   art lovers lined up outside Christie's Rockefeller Center headquarters on Tuesday to view "Salvator Mundi."
CLOSE The last  Leonardo da Vinci  painting in private hands is going to auction at Christie's in New York for an estimated $100 million. Da Vinciâs depiction of Jesus  titled "Salvator Mundi " will be auctioned on Nov. 15. (Oct. 10) AP
Visitors to Christie's wait outside in a line to view Leonardo da Vinci's 'Salvator Mundi'  Tuesday  Nov. 14  2017. (Photo: Julie Jacobson  AP)
NEW YORK (AP) â   [TGT] 
 [TGT] called "Salvator Mundi " Italian for "Savior of the World " is one of fewer than 20 paintings by  Leonardo  known to exist and the only one in private hands.  It  was sold by Christie's auction house  which didn't immediately identify the buyer.
Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece Salvator Mundi achieves $450 312 500  a #worldauctionrecord for any work of art sold at auction. pic.twitter.com/snKxm7t3cb â Christie's (@ChristiesInc) November 16  2017
The 26-inch-tall (66-centimeter-tall)  Leonardo  painting dates from around 1500 and shows Christ dressed in Renaissance-style robes  his right hand raised in blessing as his left hand holds a crystal sphere.
Its path from  Leonardo 's workshop to the auction block at Christie's was not smooth. Once owned by King Charles I of England  it disappeared from view until 1900  when it resurfaced and was acquired by a British collector. At that time it was attributed to a  Leonardo  disciple  rather than to the master himself.
The painting was sold again in 1958 and then acquired in 2005  badly damaged and partly painted-over  by a consortium of art dealers who paid less than $10 000 (8 445 euros). The art dealers restored the painting and documented its authenticity as a work by  Leonardo .
Christie's says most scholars agree that the painting is by  Leonardo   though some critics have questioned the attribution and some say the extensive restoration muddies the work's authorship.
Christie's capitalized on the public's interest in  Leonardo   considered one of the greatest artists of all time  with a media campaign that labeled the painting "The Last Da Vinci." The work was exhibited in Hong Kong  San Francisco  London and New York before the sale.
In New York  where no museum owns a  Leonardo   art lovers lined up outside Christie's Rockefeller Center headquarters on Tuesday to view "Salvator Mundi."