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There is no verifiable single “most expensive artifact in the world” across auctions, private deals, estimates and insurance valuations. Among the documented public auction results covered here, Leonardo da Vinci’s Codex Leicester is the standout illustrated manuscript: it sold for $30,802,500 in 1994, including buyer’s premium. That is a historical transaction total, not a current valuation or a ranking of every kind of art and artifact.
The examples below are selected, identifiable auction results through 2022, not a comprehensive global league table. The figures are in the currencies reported by their sources and are not adjusted for inflation. “Artifact” is used narrowly for historical objects and manuscripts; paintings are not mixed into the comparison.
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What counts as the most expensive artifact?
A price comparison only works if it distinguishes what was sold and what the number represents. An auction hammer price is the winning bid before fees; a buyer-paid total can include the auction house’s premium. Neither is interchangeable with a private-sale price, a pre-sale estimate or an insurance valuation.
The sources available establish several notable transactions, but not a complete worldwide ranking across all object types and sale channels. The Codex Leicester is a record for an illustrated manuscript; the Sekhemka result was described by Christie’s as a record for an ancient Egyptian work of art at the time. Those category-specific records should not be presented as one definitive ranking of every artifact.
#1 Best Overall
Selected documented auction results
| Object | Reported result | Sale details | What the figure means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Codex Leicester (also known as Codex Hammer), illustrated manuscript | $30,802,500 | Christie’s, New York; 11 November 1994 | Buyer-paid total including buyer’s premium, according to the Iconotheca analysis; not the hammer bid. Guinness World Records records the sale price. |
| Sekhemka, painted limestone statue | £15,762,500 / $27,001,163 / €19,766,175 | Christie’s; 10 July 2014 | Sale result reported by Christie’s, which called it a world auction record at the time for an ancient Egyptian work of art. |
| Bronze statue of Isis holding Horus | £126,000 | Reported as a 2022 sale; venue not stated in the 2026 retrospective report | Egypt Independent’s 2 July 2026 report gives a pre-sale estimate of £100,000–£150,000 and the sale result. |
| Canopic jar | $17,640 | Reported as a 2022 sale; venue not stated in the 2026 retrospective report | Egypt Independent’s 2 July 2026 report gives a pre-sale estimate of $20,000–$30,000 and the sale result. |
Why the Codex Leicester sale stands out
Guinness World Records identifies the Codex Hammer, also called the Codex Leicester, as a Leonardo da Vinci manuscript sold to Bill Gates at Christie’s in New York on 11 November 1994 for $30,802,500. The notebook was compiled around 1508–1510 and discusses subjects including hydrodynamics, hydraulic engineering, geology, astronomy and meteorology. It was renamed Codex Leicester after the sale. Guinness World Records’ record entry documents the transaction and manuscript.
The distinction between the headline total and the bid matters. Iconotheca’s account says the $30,802,500 includes buyer’s premium and reconstructs a $28 million hammer price from the premium structure; that hammer figure is an estimate, not a directly confirmed published bid. It also notes that Christie’s 1994 catalogue reproduced every page of the manuscript. Iconotheca’s account of the Codex sale explains the fee distinction.
Sekhemka: a record-setting Egyptian statue
Christie’s reported that the painted limestone statue of Sekhemka realized £15,762,500, equivalent in its release to $27,001,163 and €19,766,175, on 10 July 2014. The auction house described it as 75 cm tall and dated it to about 2400–2300 BCE, probably from Saqqara. Its inscription identifies Sekhemka as Inspector of the scribes of the royal court. Christie’s said the result set a world auction record for an ancient Egyptian work of art at that time. Christie’s 10 July 2014 post-sale release gives the price, description and record claim.
The statue’s institutional history is part of the story of its sale. Christie’s said the 2nd Marquess of Northampton acquired it while travelling in Egypt in 1849–50, and that it was given to Northampton Museum by either the 3rd or 4th Marquess before 1880. Northampton Borough Council offered it for sale; Christie’s said proceeds would help fund the museum’s extension.
Rank #3
- The Legend of Zelda: Art and Artifacts contains over four hundred pages of fully realized illustrations from the entire thirty-year history of The Legend of Zelda including artwork from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild!
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What the 2022 Egyptian examples show
Egypt Independent reported on 2 July 2026 that a bronze statue of Isis holding Horus, dated to Egypt’s 25th and 26th Dynasties (750–525 BCE), sold for £126,000 in 2022 against an estimate of £100,000–£150,000. The same report says a canopic jar dated 1550–1425 BCE sold for $17,640 against an estimate of $20,000–$30,000. These are examples of selected Egyptian antiquities, not a complete list of 2022 artifact sales or a global ranking. Egypt Independent’s retrospective report supplies the reported estimates and results.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why a famous painting is not an artifact comparison
Salvator Mundi is often cited in discussions of record art prices, but it is a painting, not an artifact under the narrower historical-object definition used here. Mental Floss reported in 2022 that the painting sold for $450 million at auction in 2017, including buyer’s premium, while noting disagreement over its attribution. It should not be folded into an artifact ranking without changing the category and addressing that dispute. Mental Floss’s 2022 report discusses the sale and attribution disagreement.
Quick Recap
Best Value
Rank #4
How to read claims about artifact values
- Check the category. A manuscript record, an ancient Egyptian art record and a painting sale answer different questions.
- Check whether a transaction occurred. A realized auction result is not an estimate, insurance value or claim that an object is “priceless.”
- Check what the number includes. Buyer’s premium can make a reported total higher than the hammer bid, as the Codex Leicester sale illustrates.
- Keep the date and currency attached. These are nominal historical amounts reported in their original currencies, not current appraisals or inflation-adjusted comparisons.
- Look for provenance and context. Ownership history, inscription, attribution and institutional circumstances can shape how an object and its sale are described; age alone does not establish a market price.
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