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The Renaissance artist's "Young Man Holding a
Roundel" is one of only around a dozen of his portraits known to
survive today. Sandro Botticelli's large-scale "Birth of Venus"
and "Primavera" paintings are displayed in Florence's Uffizi
Gallery.
Sotheby's said it was one of the most significant and valuable
portraits of any period ever to appear at auction.
The $92.2 million price at the auction, conducted by bidders on
the phone and online, included a buyer's premium. The identity
of the buyer was not immediately known.
The 15th-century work, which has also been known as "Young Man
Holding a Medallion," had carried a presale estimate of $80
million, and Sotheby's had thought it might fetch more than $100
million.
"There are a number of artists that ... are Olympian really in
their genius. And Botticelli is one of those," Christopher
Apostle, director of Old Masters paintings at the auction house,
said ahead of Thursday's auction.
Sotheby's said "Young Man Holding a Roundel" was acquired for
$1.3 million by its previous, unidentified owner at an auction
in 1982 in the United Kingdom.
It shows an unknown young man, likely a member of Florence's
elite in the late 15th century, dressed in a simple tunic with a
blue sky behind him and holding a roundel, or medallion.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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