Klimt’s Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer Sells for Record $236.4 Million at Sotheby’s Auction

A Gustav Klimt portrait achieved a record $236.4 million when it sells at Sotheby’s New York on November 18, 2025, establishing the second most expensive artwork ever sold at public auction. Only Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi has commanded a higher price at $450.3 million in 2017. The Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer exceeded its pre-auction estimate by 58 percent, with six bidders competing in approximately 19 to 20 minutes. This record-setting sale generated 45 percent of Leonard A. Lauder’s collection value, which totaled $527.5 million with fees across 24 evening works at Sotheby’s auction house.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]}

Historical Significance Beyond Market Value

Elisabeth Lederer’s portrait carries exceptional historical weight beyond its monetary value. The painting documents both artistic excellence and a remarkable Holocaust survival story. Elisabeth was a Jewish woman whose association with Klimt’s portrait became instrumental to her survival during Nazi occupation.^[10][11]

Elisabeth Lederer’s Life and Age Timeline

Key biographical dates:

• Born January 20, 1894^[12]
• Age 20 when Klimt painted her portrait (1914-1916)^[13][14]
• Married Baron Wolfgang von Bachofen-Echt in 1921^[15]
• Converted to Protestantism in 1921^[15]
• Divorced in 1934 and returned to Judaism^[15]
• Father died in 1936^[16]
• Mother fled to Budapest^[16]
• Only child died before 1938^[16]
• Age 44 during Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938^[17]
• Died December 19, 1944 from illness^[18][19]

The Lederer family ranked as Vienna’s second wealthiest, behind only the Rothschilds.^[20]

Wartime Deception Strategy and Nazi Persecution

When Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938, Elisabeth was 44 years old and alone in Vienna. She devised an audacious survival strategy using the Klimt portrait as key evidence.^[21][17]

Elisabeth’s five-element survival strategy:

1. Claimed Gustav Klimt—a deceased non-Jewish artist who died in 1918—was her biological father^[22]
2. Referenced Klimt’s documented history of approximately 14 illegitimate children to make claim credible^[22]
3. Had her mother, Serena Lederer, sign an affidavit confirming false paternity claim^[23]
4. Secured assistance from her former brother-in-law, a high-ranking Nazi official^[24][25]
5. Obtained falsified documentation declaring her Aryan descent^[25][24]

The meticulously detailed portrait served as compelling visual evidence for her deception. This extraordinary strategy allowed Elisabeth to remain safely in Vienna until her death from illness on December 19, 1944.^[19][26][18]

Provenance and Collection Ownership

Painting ownership timeline:

Erich sold the portrait in 1983, two years before his death in 1985. Leonard A. Lauder, former Estée Lauder chief executive, acquired it in 1985 and displayed it in his Fifth Avenue residence for four decades. Lauder’s wife Evelyn had fled Vienna as a Jewish child, adding multilayered personal significance. Leonard A. Lauder died June 14, 2025, at age 92.^{[29][30][31][32]}

Auction Records and Market Comparison

The Elisabeth Lederer portrait sells for a record amount, more than doubling the previous Klimt public auction record.

Klimt artwork price comparison:

The portrait at Sotheby’s now ranks as the highest price ever paid for modern art at public auction globally.^[33][34]

Maurizio Cattelan’s Gold Toilet Sells Same Evening

Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan’s America sold for $12.1 million with fees at the same Sotheby’s auction.^[35]

Gold toilet specifications and history:

• Composed of 18-karat gold weighing 101.2 kilograms^[36]
• Fully functional as a working toilet despite artistic purpose^[36]
• Two identical versions created in 2016^[37]
• First version displayed at Guggenheim Museum, 2016^[38]
• Attracted nearly 100,000 visitors at Guggenheim^[38]
• Stolen from Blenheim Palace in England, 2019^[39]
• Never recovered; investigators believe melted down^[40]
• 2025 auctioned version purchased by Ripley’s Believe It or Not^[36]

Cattelan’s related artwork sales:

Cattelan’s banana artwork, The Comedian, initially sold for $125,000 at Art Basel Miami in December 2019, then resold for $6.2 million in November 2024 to cryptocurrency entrepreneur Justin Sun.^[41][42]