NFTs offer creators a whole new way for digital creators to monetize their art
NFTs are certainly more than the pictures of some Bored monkeys or Apes, wouldn’t you agree? They have come a long way since their introduction in 2014 by a digital artist named Kevin McCoy in 2014. These digital art sell for as little as a hundred dollars to millions of dollars.
Just how big is the NFT market? Also, you should know that most of these very expensive NFTs are tied to particular communities so that they can be held accountable in case of any loss. Well, you already know about the most popular NFT communities from our previous articles.
This article will explore the most expensive NFTs ever sold and what makes them so expensive.
Let’s go…
Top 10 Most Expensive NFTs ever sold
Something striking about these NFTs is that they all have amazing features beyond being ordinary videos or images. All right then, let’s get to it!
The Merge - Which sold for a little over 91.8 million dollars
The Merge is a collection of fragmented art created by Pak, an unidentified artist. It was sold on Nifty Gateway for approximately 90 million dollars in December 2021. This makes it the most costly NFT sale in history. It would interest you to know that these NFTs were not real NFTs but were experimental Ether NFT pitch.
The idea behind the digital artist was to create a "Merging" of art that collectors could co-own rather than a single main image.
Everydays- The First 5000 Days - Which sold for $69.3 million
This NFT artwork by renowned artist Beeple was sold for more than $69 million at a courtesy Christie's auction in March 2021.
Beeple's NFT comprises 5,000 photographs shot over 5,000 days from 2007 to 2020.
This is the NFT that started it all for many people. There is virtually no NFT content you would write without mentioning the Everyday NFT collection.
"The First 5000 Days illustrates the actual potential of NFTs," stated Noah Davis, an art specialist, after the original piece was sold.
MetaKovan purchased the artwork. Why? He believes information should be freely available.
Beeple, Human One, which sold for $29.98 million
This NFT is an ever-changing, life-generating sculpture. It has the sculpture of an astronaut roaming through various places. Beeple has made a commitment to "upgrade" the NFT throughout his lifetime, ensuring that the art will never be stagnant.
The concept captured a lot of NFT enthusiasts at Christie's. It was none other than the crypto billionaire, Ryan Zurrer who purchased it for $29 million on the 9th of December, 2021.
Larva Labs, Cryptopunks #7523, which sold for $11.75 million
The CryptoPunks is an NFT collection of individually created characters based on the Ethereum network.
In June 2021, CryptoPunk #7523, also known as "Covid Alien," sold for $11.75 million at Sotheby's auction house in London, making it the most expensive CryptoPunk ever sold. The NFT was one of nine "Alien Punks" who were part of an unusual alien gang.
Larva Labs, Cryptopunks #3100, which sold for $7.58 million
This is one of the most expensive Alien Punks ever sold, and it costs somewhat more than CryptoPunk #7804. #3100 is a headband-wearing blue and white alien.
A headband is worn by just 406 of the 10,000 CryptoPunks. It was released in 2017 and quickly gained fame after receiving a $2 million bid in March 2021, and it went on to sell for $7.58 million the following month. At the time of writing, the NFT is on the market for 35000 ETH, or over $100 million.
Xcopy: Right-Click and Save As Guy, which sold for $7.09 million
Right-click and Save As Guy is an NFT image that sold for 1,600 ETH ($7.09 million) on the decentralized marketplace Superrare on December 10.
Cozomo De' Medici was the NFT name that purchased it. This is none other than the renowned hip hop artist, Snoop Dogg.
Art Blocks, Ringers #109, which sold for $6.93 million
This NFT was recently purchased for 2100 ETH by an undisclosed collector. The NFT is worth $7 million at the current market price of Ethereum.
Thanks to the sale, ringers #109 NFT is now the most costly NFT in the ART Blocks project. Ringer #879 was the highest expensive NFT sold on August 28th, 2021 before this, and it is presently among the top five most expensive NFTs.
On Twitter, NarcissusGLRY co-founder AKIRA identified themselves as the seller. In March 2021, he purchased the NFT for only $230, and he achieved a 3.2 million percent profit on the sale in just six months. He also congratulated all of the participants.
Beeple, Crossroad, which sold for $6.6 million
Mike Winkelmann, also known as Beeple, is the creator of the cartoon NFT Crossroad. It depicts former US President Donald Trump lying in a field while spectators watch on.
In February 2021, it was purchased for $6.6 million on Nifty Gateway; however, the deal was finalized on the secondary market.
This Changed Everything which sold for $5.4 million
This stunning NFT is a non-fiction translation of the source code for one of the Internet's earliest versions. On June 30th, 2021, it was sold for $5.4 million to an anonymous customer through Sotheby's.
The NFT includes a letter from Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee, the internet's inventor and an English computer scientist, and a digital poster of his code and time-stamped documents remembering the internet's early history.
Save Thousands of Lives which sold for $4.5 million
Save Thousands of Lives is an NFT created by Noora Health, an organization that saves the lives of at-risk patients in South Asia. The artwork was auctioned for 1337 ETH ($4.5 million) in May 2021. Instead, the donations were used to help the organization save babies' lives.
My Two Cents
It might seem like there’s an NFT craze out there that has, of course, dwindled because of the market crash. NFTs are moving beyond digital art, and creators are building utility for them. Will NFTs stand the test of time? Only time will tell.
I/we have no positions in any asset mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions for the next 7 days
NFTs are certainly more than the pictures of some Bored monkeys or Apes, wouldn’t you agree? They have come a long way since their introduction in 2014 by a digital artist named Kevin McCoy in 2014. These digital art sell for as little as a hundred dollars to millions of dollars.
Just how big is the NFT market? Also, you should know that most of these very expensive NFTs are tied to particular communities so that they can be held accountable in case of any loss. Well, you already know about the most popular NFT communities from our previous articles.
This article will explore the most expensive NFTs ever sold and what makes them so expensive.
Let’s go…
Top 10 Most Expensive NFTs ever sold
Something striking about these NFTs is that they all have amazing features beyond being ordinary videos or images. All right then, let’s get to it!
The Merge - Which sold for a little over 91.8 million dollars
The Merge is a collection of fragmented art created by Pak, an unidentified artist. It was sold on Nifty Gateway for approximately 90 million dollars in December 2021. This makes it the most costly NFT sale in history. It would interest you to know that these NFTs were not real NFTs but were experimental Ether NFT pitch.
The idea behind the digital artist was to create a "Merging" of art that collectors could co-own rather than a single main image.
Everydays- The First 5000 Days - Which sold for $69.3 million
This NFT artwork by renowned artist Beeple was sold for more than $69 million at a courtesy Christie's auction in March 2021.
Beeple's NFT comprises 5,000 photographs shot over 5,000 days from 2007 to 2020.
This is the NFT that started it all for many people. There is virtually no NFT content you would write without mentioning the Everyday NFT collection. "The First 5000 Days illustrates the actual potential of NFTs," stated Noah Davis, an art specialist, after the original piece was sold.
MetaKovan purchased the artwork. Why? He believes information should be freely available.
Beeple, Human One, which sold for $29.98 million
This NFT is an ever-changing, life-generating sculpture. It has the sculpture of an astronaut roaming through various places. Beeple has made a commitment to "upgrade" the NFT throughout his lifetime, ensuring that the art will never be stagnant.
The concept captured a lot of NFT enthusiasts at Christie's. It was none other than the crypto billionaire, Ryan Zurrer who purchased it for $29 million on the 9th of December, 2021.
Larva Labs, Cryptopunks #7523, which sold for $11.75 million
The CryptoPunks is an NFT collection of individually created characters based on the Ethereum network.
In June 2021, CryptoPunk #7523, also known as "Covid Alien," sold for $11.75 million at Sotheby's auction house in London, making it the most expensive CryptoPunk ever sold. The NFT was one of nine "Alien Punks" who were part of an unusual alien gang.
Larva Labs, Cryptopunks #3100, which sold for $7.58 million
This is one of the most expensive Alien Punks ever sold, and it costs somewhat more than CryptoPunk #7804. #3100 is a headband-wearing blue and white alien.
A headband is worn by just 406 of the 10,000 CryptoPunks. It was released in 2017 and quickly gained fame after receiving a $2 million bid in March 2021, and it went on to sell for $7.58 million the following month. At the time of writing, the NFT is on the market for 35000 ETH, or over $100 million.
Xcopy: Right-Click and Save As Guy, which sold for $7.09 million
Right-click and Save As Guy is an NFT image that sold for 1,600 ETH ($7.09 million) on the decentralized marketplace Superrare on December 10.
Cozomo De' Medici was the NFT name that purchased it. This is none other than the renowned hip hop artist, Snoop Dogg.
Art Blocks, Ringers #109, which sold for $6.93 million
This NFT was recently purchased for 2100 ETH by an undisclosed collector. The NFT is worth $7 million at the current market price of Ethereum.
Thanks to the sale, ringers #109 NFT is now the most costly NFT in the ART Blocks project. Ringer #879 was the highest expensive NFT sold on August 28th, 2021 before this, and it is presently among the top five most expensive NFTs.
On Twitter, NarcissusGLRY co-founder AKIRA identified themselves as the seller. In March 2021, he purchased the NFT for only $230, and he achieved a 3.2 million percent profit on the sale in just six months. He also congratulated all of the participants.
Beeple, Crossroad, which sold for $6.6 million
Mike Winkelmann, also known as Beeple, is the creator of the cartoon NFT Crossroad. It depicts former US President Donald Trump lying in a field while spectators watch on.
In February 2021, it was purchased for $6.6 million on Nifty Gateway; however, the deal was finalized on the secondary market.
This Changed Everything which sold for $5.4 million
This stunning NFT is a non-fiction translation of the source code for one of the Internet's earliest versions. On June 30th, 2021, it was sold for $5.4 million to an anonymous customer through Sotheby's.
The NFT includes a letter from Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee, the internet's inventor and an English computer scientist, and a digital poster of his code and time-stamped documents remembering the internet's early history.
Save Thousands of Lives which sold for $4.5 million
Save Thousands of Lives is an NFT created by Noora Health, an organization that saves the lives of at-risk patients in South Asia. The artwork was auctioned for 1337 ETH ($4.5 million) in May 2021. Instead, the donations were used to help the organization save babies' lives.
My Two Cents
It might seem like there’s an NFT craze out there that has, of course, dwindled because of the market crash. NFTs are moving beyond digital art, and creators are building utility for them. Will NFTs stand the test of time? Only time will tell.
I/we have no positions in any asset mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions for the next 7 days