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15 most expensive NFTs in the world - a luxury selection in one review
8 April 2022
Reading time: 11 minutes
NFT paintings from well-known artists are breaking sales records with increasing speed. The hype around non-fungible tokens is gaining momentum. Despite the opinions of some skeptics about the “bloat” of the NFT bubble, more and more investors are entering the industry and NFT token development is gaining massive popularity. We have compiled a list of the most expensive tokens for February 2022.
1. The Merge - $91.8M
This NFT token is the most expensive painting not only in the digital world. “Confluence” is the most expensive work of a living artist in principle. Strictly speaking, The Merge is not a single NFT. The work is divided into parts - "the masses", which are owned by 28,983 collectors. Bidding for the right to own part of the painting was held from 2 to 4 December 2021. Upon their completion, the “masses” in the wallets of the owners merged into a single token. The buyer who purchased the largest number of “masses” became the owner of “Alpha Masses”.
2. "Everydays: The First 5000 Days" by Beeple - $69.3M
Until recently, this picture was considered the champion in terms of NFT value. The Beeple token is a collage of 5,000 color-coded photographs that the author took daily for 13 years. The work was sold at Christie's auction in April 2021 to user Metakovan.
3. Human One by Beeple - $28.9M
Third place also belongs to a cryptoarter called Beeple. The work “Man One” consists of a token with a 3d image of an astronaut and a physical shell - a cube of four video screens 4 × 4 feet in size. NFT is dynamic. Beeple has access to it and periodically changes the details of the picture projected on the screens. Thus, tokenized art reaches a new, performative level.
4. CryptoPunk #7523 - $11.75M
The most expensive cryptopunk nft token at the moment. The CryptoPunks collection was launched in 2017 by the Larva Labs team. In total, there are 10,000 cryptopunks with unique designs. Initially, they were distributed free of charge. Today, some copies are worth millions of dollars. CryptoPunk #7523 is a blue-skinned alien wearing a red hat and protective mask.
5. CryptoPunk #3100 - $7.58M
The cost of Cryptopunks depends on the rarity of their attributes. So, aliens are valued above all - there are only 9 of them in the entire collection. CryptoPunk #3100 is an alien with a white and blue headband (which is also rare). Thanks to the "winning" combination, this punk was sold for a record amount at the time of the transaction.
6. CryptoPunk #7804 - $7.57M
Punk, quite a bit inferior in value to its "brother" - and only because it was sold a day later, when the exchange rate of the Ethereum cryptocurrency against the dollar changed. Room 7804 features a smoking pipe, cap and sunglasses. To many users, the character resembles Sherlock Holmes.
7. Right-click and Save As guy by Xcopy - $7.09M
The famous crypto-artist Xcopy in the title of his work “Right click and Save as…” is ironic at users who talk about the uselessness of NFT because of the ability to easily copy any picture. The image itself is a gif file with a stylized portrait of a guy in a sweatshirt with a hood and glasses. Although Right-click and Save As guy is not yet the most expensive nft token in the world, many experts believe that Xcopy works will grow in price in the near future.
8. Ringers #109 - $6.9M
The Art Blocks group created a generative series of NFT images consisting of pegs and ropes wrapped around them. As in the case of CryptoPunks, the price of a token is affected by the rarity of the elements present in it. So, in #109 there is a red circle, which is found in only 0.3% of the works from the Ringers series. White background and loops are also quite rare.
9. "Crossroad" by Beeple - $6.6 million
Another token from Beeple. This time - with political overtones. The picture is dedicated to the 2020 US presidential election. In the figure covered with insults, the features of Donald Trump, who failed to be re-elected for a second term, are guessed. The work was bought on the Nifty Gateway exchange on February 25, 2021. According to Beeple himself, if the election results were different, the content of the NFT would automatically change.
10. A Coin for the Ferryman by Xcopy — $6.01 million
“Coin for the boatman” is one of the first works of the promising artist, created by him in 2018. Similar in style to Right-click and Save As guy. The painting was sold in November 2021 and immediately entered the top ten most expensive nft tokens sold in a year.
11. "Ocean Front" by Beeple - $6 million
The work is devoted to the problem of climate change and environmental protection. It's a dark, dystopian landscape centered around old shipping containers and a tree growing out of them.
Like some of the other most expensive NFTs in this collection, the painting was sold in the spring of 2021. Beeple promised to donate the proceeds to charity.
12. "Stay Free" by Edward Snowden - $5.5 million
The infamous former NSA and CIA agent Edward Snowden exhibited his NFT at the Foundation site in April 2021. The work is a scan of pages from a US court ruling outlawing the activities of the National Security Agency. A portrait of Snowden himself emerges through the lines on the paper. The proceeds from the token were donated to the Freedom of the Press Foundation, of which Snowden is a director.
13. CryptoPunk #5217 - $5.4M
From Cryptopunks, there is another NFT token in our top. The most expensive sales in the CryptoPunks series aren't just for aliens. Punk monkeys are also popular. So #5217, in a red hat, became the fourth most valuable token from the collection today.
14. Replicator by Mad Dog Jones - $4.1M
Replicator is a self-replicating NFT. In total, the token consists of 7 generations. The first is to create 6 unique images - one per month. Each next generation will produce one less image. All versions of the art will combine the image of a printer installed in one of the Los Angeles offices. Thus, the most expensive nft tokens are not just photos or paintings. These are digital works of art that have a life of their own.
15. Jack Dorsey's first tweet - $2.9 million
The tokenized post with the very first Tweet was put up for sale by the founder of the company - Jack Dorsey - in March 2021. The post, dated March 21, 2006, reads “Just setting up my Twitter”.
As a conclusion, let's say that NFT pictures with tokens are only gaining popularity. The most expensive of them, according to experts, in 2022 may exceed the price of $100 million.
