Damien Hirst never sold the € 89M diamonds skull

Damien Hirst has just admitted that the diamond skull allegedly sold in 2007, 89 million euros, had never been sold at all. A skull created by Damien Hirst made headlines in 2007 by becoming the most expensive contemporary work of art ever sold. The artist had announced the sale of For the Love of God , a human skull in platinum covered with 8,601 diamonds, for the sum of 89 million euros, to anonymous buyers. He has finally just admitted that the sale had never concluded. He kept it for fifteen years in a warehouse in Hatton Garden, the jeweler's district of London. It has never left the collection of Damien Hirst and the White Cube Gallery, who also share ownership with a group of anonymous investors. Professional jewelers were surprised by the cost price. Damien Hirst had claimed to have financed 9 million euros himself to create the work. During his exhibition at the White Cube, he had stated that the actual cost of production was 18 million euros. "I would estimate the real value of the skull rather between 8 and 12 million euros ," said Harry Levy, then vice-president of the London Diamond Bourse & Club. Doubts quickly raise on the veracity of the sale, due to the absence of evidence provided by the gallery. Seen in le Journal des Arts - Julie Goy
Video ; Damien Hirst speaks about the sculpture