Mysterious buyer of Maurizio Cattelan’s £9.3 million golden toilet revealed
The mysterious auction buyer of a golden toilet for £9.3 million has been confirmed to be Ripley’s Believe It or Not!
The historic piece was made by Italian conceptual artist Maurizio Cattelan and weighs a whopping 101.2kg of solid 18-carat gold.
Initially, it went on show in the world-famous Guggenheim in Bilbao in 2016. Then, in 2019, it made international news when it was stolen from Blenheim Palace, and all these years later, it’s location remains unknown.
A second golden toilet later emerged, which sold at Sotheby’s auction in New York on November 18th to Ripley’s.
Taking to Instagram, they humorously remarked of the lavish purchase, “This World Toilet Day, we’re flush with excitement! Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! has purchased a solid gold toilet for $12.1 million!”
Their statement continued by providing a history lesson on the item, “Created by artist Maurizio Cattelan, the solid gold toilet titled America is now the most valuable exhibit to join the Ripley’s collection. The 18-karat throne first dazzled visitors at the Guggenheim in 2016 before disappearing in 2019 from the Blenheim Palace in an overnight caper. Believe It or Not!, that edition is still missing!”
They proudly added, “Ripley’s has purchased the only fully fabricated edition of the golden throne still known to exist, and we intend to keep this one from embarking on any unexpected adventures.”
Ripley’s proudly confirmed it plans to “display the sculpture in all its glory” which they say will allow “guests the chance to get up close to the world’s most extravagant restroom fixture”.
However, it remains undecided as to whether guests will be permitted to “take the ultimate golden seat on this fully-functional toilet”. Ripley’s say they are “exploring possibilities”, but noted it “requires serious planning and someone brave enough to ensure everything keeps flowing in the right direction”.
