Da Vinci Painting ‘Salvator Mundi’ Worth $450 Million Heads To Louvre Abu Dhabi
By PanARMENIAN
A 500-year-old painting of Christ believed to be the work of Leonardo da Vinci is heading to the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the museum has said, according to BBC.
The newly-opened museum , without specifying whether it had bought the painting at auction this month.
Media reports say it was purchased by a Saudi prince.
The work – known as Salvator Mundi (Saviour of the World) – was sold in New York for a record $450m (£341m).
It was the highest auction price for any work of art.
The unidentified buyer was involved in a bidding contest, via telephone, that lasted nearly 20 minutes.
The New York Times reported that it was bought by Saudi prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan al-Saud, citing documents the newspaper had reviewed.
Leonardo da Vinci died in 1519 and there are fewer than 20 of his paintings in existence.
