Art auctions: This Marilyn Monroe is said to cost 200 million

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A man looks at Warhol's picture during a press event at Christie's Action House in New York.

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Angela Weiss / AFP

A portrait of Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe by pop artist Andy Warhol could become the most expensive painting of the 20th century offered at auction: Christie's auction house is auctioning the 1964 silkscreen »Shot Sage Blue Marilyn« on Monday.

Estimated price: 200 million dollars (around 190 million euros).

The Monroe portrait is "one of the rarest and most extraordinary images that exist," wrote the auction house.

"Andy Warhol's Marilyn is the absolute pinnacle of American pop and the promise of the American dream that combines optimism, fragility, celebrity and iconography," said Alex Rotter, Christie's director of 20th and 21st Century Art.

Most expensive painting ever auctioned: »Salvator Mundi«

Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth/ AP

If Warhol's work meets or exceeds its estimate, it would be the second most expensive painting in history ever sold at auction.

Only one thing has brought in more: the oil painting »Salvator Mundi« (»Saviour of the World«), which was created around 1500, shows Jesus Christ and is often attributed to the Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci, although this is not art-historically certain .

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also bought it at Christie's five years ago for $450 million.

The second most expensive painting to date is »The Women of Algiers (Version O)«, the oil painting by Pablo Picasso from 1955, which was auctioned for almost 180 million dollars. Two paintings from a series by the Italian painter Amedeo are in the next ranks Modigliani;

His two paintings »The Reclining Nude« fetched sales prices of 170 and 157 million dollars a few years ago.

In seventh place is the famous work »The Scream« by Norwegian expressionist Edvard Munch, which went under the hammer ten years ago for $120 million.

Auction houses are hoping for a record season

Warhol's Marilyn portrait has so far been owned by the Thomas and Doris Ammann Foundation in Zurich, which has announced that it will use the proceeds from the spring auction for charitable purposes.

With the start of the season, the auction houses have high expectations and are hoping for new records.

In addition to Christie's, this applies above all to its big rival Sotheby's.

Among other things, the second part of the Macklowe collection is now coming onto the market there, as well as the picture »Femme nue couchée« by Pablo Picasso with an estimated value of 60 million dollars.

"We're looking forward to another billion-dollar sales week," said Brooke Lampley, manager at Sotheby's.

»It will be one of the largest auction series in our history.« 21 works of art alone are valued at more than ten million dollars each.

The auction house sees "sustained and even increasing confidence in the art market as we emerge from the pandemic," as Lampley explained.

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