Sotheby's is auctioning Maurizio Cattelan's solid gold toilet, titled "America" (2016), during its November evening sale at the Breuer Building in New York. The 18-karat, 100-kilogram functional toilet will be on view from November 8, though visitors will not be allowed to use it. The starting bid will be determined by the work's weight in gold, estimated around $10 million. The piece was previously exhibited at the Guggenheim Museum in 2016, where over 100,000 visitors used it, and at Blenheim Palace in the UK, where it was infamously stolen in a smash-and-grab heist and never recovered. Sotheby's will accept cryptocurrency for the sale, following the precedent set by Cattelan's banana artwork last year.
This auction matters because "America" is one of Cattelan's most iconic works, blending conceptual art with biting commentary on commodity value and the art market. Its sale at Sotheby's, with a gold-weight-based starting bid and crypto payment option, highlights the ongoing convergence of high finance, digital currency, and contemporary art. The work's history—from museum bathroom to theft target—underscores its cultural resonance and the enduring fascination with Cattelan's provocative practice. The auction also tests whether the market for such conceptual pieces continues to grow, especially among new crypto-wealthy collectors.