Sotheby’s Now and Contemporary evening sale in New York made headlines with an unexpected star: Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian, a banana duct-taped to a wall, sold for an astonishing $6.24 million. The buyer, cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun, plans to honor the artwork’s cultural significance by eating the banana, as he announced on X (formerly Twitter).

Auctioneer Oliver Barker kept the room buzzing with humor and puns during the nearly 10-minute bidding battle, which started at $800,000 and quickly escalated. The sale exceeded expectations, with the banana selling for more than four times its $1.5 million pre-sale estimate. Sotheby’s also accepted cryptocurrency for the work, with Sun opting to pay in TRX, the currency of his blockchain platform TRON.

While Comedian stole the show, the sale brought in a total of $110.4 million, surpassing its low estimate of $100 million and achieving a sell-through rate of nearly 90 percent.

Standout Sales and Records

Ed Ruscha’s George’s Flag (1999)

• Sold for $13.7 million, marking the evening’s top lot, though far below the artist’s $68 million record set earlier in the week at Christie’s.

Stuart Davis’s Contranuities (1963)

• Hammered at $12.2 million, doubling the artist’s previous auction record.

Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Red Kings (1981)

• Fetched $7.2 million.

Roy Lichtenstein Collection

• Six works from Dorothy and Roy Lichtenstein added over $18 million, with highlights like Nude with Bust (Study) selling for $4.6 million and Oval Office (Study) for $4.2 million.

Emerging Artists

Pol Taburet’s Buried on a Sunday (2021): $156,000 (new record).

Hilary Pecis’s Bookshelf (2021): $504,000.

Pol Taburet’s Buried on a Sunday (2021): $156,000 (new record).

Contemporary Icons and Market Trends

The sale also featured works by celebrated artists like Yayoi Kusama, Cy Twombly, and Agnes Martin, all crossing the seven-figure mark. However, Jeff Koons’s Woman in Tub, estimated at $10 million–$15 million, failed to sell, reflecting shifting market preferences.

Despite a few unsold lots, Sotheby’s leadership expressed optimism. Lucius Elliot, head of contemporary marquee auctions, noted a stronger market sentiment leading up to the sale.

Yet, as attendees exited the salesroom, all conversations revolved around Comedian, reinforcing its status as both a critique and a celebration of the art market’s often absurd dynamics.