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maurizio cattelan america gold toilet auction 2707156

Maurizio Cattelan's 18-karat gold toilet sculpture, *America* (2016), sold at Sotheby's New York for $12.1 million to Ripley's Believe It or Not!, the entertainment franchise known for oddities. The work, consigned by hedge-fund manager Steve Cohen, was auctioned from the Breuer Building and drew long viewing lines. Despite a playful bidding process led by auctioneer Phyllis Kao, the final price fell short of Cattelan's auction record of $17.2 million set by *Him* (2001) at Christie's in 2016.

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auctioneers jewelry evening sales 1234763909

Sotheby's held its inaugural evening sale at the Breuer building, featuring the Contemporary and the Now sale. Auctioneer Oliver Barker achieved $527.5 million in sales, surpassing the pre-sale low estimate of $379 million. The highlight was Gustav Klimt's portrait of Elisabeth Lederer, which sold for $236.4 million, setting an auction record for Klimt and becoming the second most expensive work ever sold at auction. During the sale, auctioneer Phyllis Kao wore a David Webb necklace from the mid-1980s, featuring carved emeralds, rubies, and cabochon sapphires, which was on view and available for private sale at Sotheby's retail salon in the Breuer lobby.

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