{"id":294310,"date":"2025-11-19T23:52:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T23:52:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/294310\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T23:52:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T23:52:08","slug":"ripleys-buys-maurizio-cattelans-gold-toilet-for-12-1-m","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/294310\/","title":{"rendered":"Ripley\u2019s Buys Maurizio Cattelan\u2019s Gold Toilet for $12.1 M."},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tThe new owner of\u00a0Maurizio Cattelan<\/a>\u2019s\u00a0\u201cAmerica\u201d\u00a0(2016)\u2014the 18-karat gold, fully functioning toilet that sold for $12.1 million on Tuesday night\u2014is Ripley\u2019s Believe It or Not!<\/p>\n

\n\tThe museum announced itself<\/a> as the buyer on Instagram. Previously, Sotheby\u2019s<\/a> only identified the buyer as a \u201cFamous American Brand.\u201d The work came to the block in Sotheby\u2019s \u201cNow & Contemporary\u201d auction, where it hammered at $10 million after a single bid, finishing only slightly above the value of its raw gold.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn its post, Ripley\u2019s said it was \u201cflush with excitement<\/a>,\u201d calling\u00a0\u201cAmerica\u201d\u00a0the most valuable object to join its collection and noting that it had acquired the only fully fabricated edition of the sculpture known to exist. The company referenced the work\u2019s improbable history\u2014its star turn at the Guggenheim in 2016, and the disappearance of a second golden toilet in a 2019 smash-and-grab at Blenheim Palace. Ripley\u2019s added that it plans to put the toilet on public display and is \u201cexploring possibilities\u201d for whether visitors will eventually be allowed to sit on the fully functional sculpture.<\/p>\n

\t\tRelated Articles<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"It's<\/p>\n

\n\tThe toilet was consigned by billionaire collector and Mets owner Steve Cohen<\/a>, who purchased it from Marian Goodman Gallery in 2017. Sotheby\u2019s confirmed before the sale that the work carried no irrevocable bid and that cryptocurrency would be accepted as payment. Installed for viewing in a private bathroom at Sotheby\u2019s new Breuer Building headquarters, the sculpture was strictly off-limits for use\u2014a sharp contrast to its Guggenheim installation, where more than 100,000 visitors queued to try it.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cAmerica\u201d\u00a0sold near its metal value despite wide pre-sale speculation. It is one of only two extant versions of the edition, with the Blenheim one still missing. Sotheby\u2019s vice chairman\u00a0Cassandra Hatton<\/a>\u00a0handled the winning bid.<\/p>\n

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