All this time, people become very curious to the riddles behind one of the da Vinci’s greatest paintings, Monalisa. However, there is another masterpiece of da Vinci that also raises people’s curiosity for the last decade. Salvator Mundi which has been sold for $450 million in the auction is now the most expensive paintings and full of controversy.
The Last da Vinci’s Painting Held by Private Collector
Many da Vinci experts believe that the Salvator Mundi was created around 1500 and presented to Louis XII, the King of France. Over centuries, many people thought that the painting was just the copy of originally made by an amateur. The painting was also remained unknown by the public before 1945 when it was sold for $45 at an auction in London. For years, Salvator Mundi also became part of King Charles’ private collection hung in Buckingham House (now Buckingham Palace) in 1713. During the London Blitz occurred in 1940, the painting could survive from Nazi’s invasion. The owners of the painting were reported to abandon it in a basement during the war. No one knew about the origin of Salvator Mundi until a collector in Louisiana bought it for $90 in an auction in 1958. The public attention over the painting increased when Robert Simon, an American art dealer, and historian found and then sold it for $10,000. Along with Alexander Parish, his fellow art dealer, they found that Salvator Mundi was one of the long-lost Leonardo’s originals.
People Even Doubt If It Is Real
Even 6 years after its restoration, most art experts still doubt whether the Salvator Mundi was real or not. They still argued whether the painting was one of the 20 copies of work that are believed to exist in the world. However, the painting was reportedly purchased by Yves Bouvier, a Swiss businessman, and art dealer for $80 million in 2013! The price of the painting even increased in ridiculous amount when it was sold for $127 million in 2014. It was bought by Dmitry Rybolovlev, a Russian billionaire. However, when Rybolovlev sold the painting to two Arab prices, the price hit $450 million! This is actually where the controversy behind the painting begins and Yves Bouvier is undoubtedly becoming the center of it. He has been known for years for his Natural Le Coultre, a family business that focuses on storage and transportation of the most precious items and works arts in the world. He is a really talented person in the business and has a good instinct on knowing who is willing to buy or who wants to sell desperately. He is popular as “King of Freeports” since he takes control several freeports in other countries such as Singapore and Luxembourg which become the shadow art market.
Most Con Center of the Century
Despite the originality of Salvator Mundi, the high price of the painting also becomes center of controversy for the century. After all, the collaboration between Rybolovlev and Bouvier couldn’t stand longer when the Russian billionaire set up a litigation against the Swiss businessman in Singapore, USA, Monaco, and Switzerland. Rybolovlev accused Bouvier that he was actually “paid” for $80 million by Sotheby’s and charged him $47.5 million for the painting. For more info about the con behinds Salvator Mundi you can visit this link.
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