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British auction house Christie’s has announced a new auction featuring non-fungible token (NFT) artworks — “Beyond the Screen.”
In a post on X (Twitter), Christie’s stated that this auction “contextualizes digital art within the wider contemporary art landscape” — marking it as the first of its kind on the platform.
The auction will feature 20 lots, including notable pieces like CryptoPunk #1423, NFTiff #130, and a Tiffany & Co. Pendant. This pendant, created in collaboration with CryptoPunk in 2022, will be delivered in both digital and physical forms. The estimated bidding range for this lot is between $100,000 and $150,000, making it the highest estimated bid in the auction.
The second highest estimated bid is for “Remote Sheel,” an artwork created and minted in 2023 by Panamanian artist Itzel Yard, also known as Ix Shells.
Another highlight of the auction is “CENTS Block 839969,” a unique full-block inscription by Rutherford Chang. This piece involves the copper block into which Chang smelted 10,000 CENTS.
Bidding for these artworks will open on May 31 and run through June 11. Additionally, there will be a physical exhibition of the artworks at Christie’s New York from June 7 to 11.
This NFT auction follows Christie’s first Bitcoin-based NFT auction, “Ordinal Maxi Biz (OMB),” which took place last month and gathered over $730,000.
Christie’s has been active in the digital art space since launching its NFT auction platform, Christie’s 3.0, in 2022. This platform allows the company to conduct fine art auctions entirely on the blockchain.
In a 2022 report, Christie’s revealed it had sold 87 NFT lots during that year, generating a total of $5.9 million. Notable artists included in these sales were Diana Sinclair, Mad Dog Jones, and Fewocious.