The $92 Million Renaissance Man & More Masters Week Results

This Thursday, January 28, 2021, the Sotheby's auction set a record of $114.5 million thanks to the Portrait of the Young Man Holding a Cockade by Florentine artist Sandro Botticelli. This is an important work from the Italian Renaissance, which was placed at the head of Sotheby's Master's Week 2021. The sale also included paintings, drawings and other exceptional works that had not been seen for centuries.

The Portrait of Botticelli brings in $92.2 million

Botticelli's incredible Portrait of a young man holding a cockade was sold for the sum of 92,184,000 dollars. This record makes it one of the most expensive works of his time, but also the most valuable painting ever sold. In fact, at its previous sale, it was sold in 1982 for $1.3 million. "This is a painting that transcends the normal boundaries of the Old Master genre," said George Wachter.
Thanks to Sotheby's original live distance selling format since June 2020, many of the works have reached record levels. Prior to Botticelli's work, Francis Bacon's Triptych was sold for $80 million.

During the Master Week 2021, the Sotheby's auction house was in partnership with the Bulgari house. Specialists from the Master department and the Sotheby's auctioneer, Oliver Barker, offered a number of high-value products. The "Rosso Caravaggio" necklace, which is precious because of the materials it is made of, such as platinum, ruby and diamonds, was presented. Also, a watch named "Octo Finissimo Automatic" was presented on the auctioneer's wrist, and a set of matching bracelets and earrings were shown as a pendant thanks to this partnership.

The second most expensive work of art in this sale was The Descent from the Cross, also a painting by Hugo Van der Goes. Painted in 1480, it was rediscovered in 1950, marking the expression of piety and the devotion that emanates from it.
Other works also made their mark on these sales, including Le Relief de la Madone by Lucca della Robbia in 1450, which sold for more than $2 million, and La Nature morte d'Aelst, sold for $1,230,000. A work by the Master of Marradi also sold for $1,024,300.

To see the results, click here.