At first it was just a humble banana. Then it became a work of art – attached to a gallery wall with duct tape by the Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan. Next, it was eaten – twice – by a succession of performance artists who helped turn it into a global news story. And now, said banana has been sold for $5.2m at Sotheby’s New York, making it surely the most expensive piece of edible fruit on the planet.
The 2019 work, Comedian – which according to its maker is a “sincere commentary on what we value” – was purchased by crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun who described it as a “cultural phenomenon”. Sun forked out more than four times the initial estimate for the work during what was reported to have been an extremely fast-moving auction involving seven bidders. Even auctioneer Oliver Barker seemed a little taken aback: “These are words I never thought I would say: ‘The banana has sold for 5.2 million dollars,’” he joked at the conclusion of the sale.
