The viral duct-taped banana artwork by Maurizio Cattelan sold for $6.2 million during a Sotheby’s auction in New York on Wednesday, November 20, nearly $5 million above the estimated sale price.Footage released by Sotheby’s shows bidders pursuing Cattelan’s conceptual piece ‘Comedian’ on Wednesday night in the Sotheby’s salesroom in Manhattan. Justin Sun, the founder of cryptocurrency platform TRON, placed the winning bid of $5.2 million by phone, making the total sale $6.2 million with auction fees included.“This is not just an artwork; it represents a cultural phenomenon that bridges the worlds of art, memes, and the cryptocurrency community,” Sun told Sotheby’s. “I believe this piece will inspire more thought and discussion in the future and will become a part of history.”Sun added that he will eat the banana in the coming days, “honoring its place in both art history and popular culture.”‘Comedian’ quickly went viral after Cattelan, an Italian visual artist, debuted the piece at the Art Basel Fair Miami in 2019, drawing so large a crowd that it had to be removed from the premises. In the two weeks prior to the auction at Sotheby’s, ‘Comedian’ drew over 12,000 visitors in New York.The piece that was sold to Sun is the second in an edition of three plus two artist’s proofs, an example of which is in New York’s Solomon R Guggenheim Museum.‘Comedian’ comes with a certificate of authenticity and installation instructions, according to reports. Credit: Sotheby’s via Storyful