Two princes and an emirate: Record Da Vinci spurs many ‘buyers’

People gather around Leonardo da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi” on display at Christie’s auction rooms in London

Another day and another high-profile buyer has emerged for the record USD450 million purchase of Leonardo Da Vinci’s “Salvator Mundi.” In the span of just three days, two princes and an emirate have been named as either buyers, acquirers or proxy purchasers – depending on whom you believe.

Amid the conflicting reports, the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism issued a statement Friday that it acquired the painting for display at the country’s new museum, Louvre Abu Dhabi. Christie’s, the auction house behind the sale, and the Saudi Embassy in Washington separately confirmed the information.

The confusing saga started on Dec. 6 when the Louvre Abu Dhabi tweeted that it was getting the most expensive painting in the world. The news was quickly followed by a New York Times story identifying Saudi Prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan al Saud as the buyer, citing documents it reviewed.

The following day, the Wall Street Journal reported that Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was the true buyer, citing a source in the U.S. government intelligence community and a Saudi art-world figure familiar with the purchase.

The crown prince has been silent on the matter. But on Friday, Saudi Arabia’s embassy weighed in.

In response to media reports about the sale, the embassy said it contacted the office of Prince Bader, which confirmed the artwork was “acquired” by the Abu Dhabi culture department.

The inquiry revealed that Prince Bader “as a friendly supporter of the Louvre Abu Dhabi, attended its opening ceremony on November 8 and was subsequently asked by the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism to act as an intermediary purchaser for the piece,” according to the statement.

The kerfuffle comes as Saudi Arabia’s crown prince is undertaking an anti-corruption campaign. More than 300 people were summoned for questioning and 159 were placed in detention, Saudi Arabia’s attorney general has said. Bank accounts of 376 individuals, all of whom are either detainees or people linked to them, have been frozen.

The news of the dueling purchasers has been the talk of the art world during Art Basel Miami Beach, where the world’s leading galleries and collectors gathered for the largest contemporary art fair in the U.S.

When Prince Bader’s identity was initially revealed, collectors mused whether the painting would be a loan or a gift to the Louvre Abu Dhabi – and how he could be allowed to pursue such a purchase during the kingdom’s crackdown on graft.

“The thing is very odd,” said Jean Pigozzi, a collector of African art, about Prince Bader’s role. “All these rich guys are detained in the hotel and this guy pops up and signs a check for $450 million?”

Perhaps that explains why the Saudi embassy, in an e-mail to reporters, said: “In light of the erroneous reports on the da Vinci painting purchase, the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has issued a statement to set the record straight.”

The painting, which depicts Jesus Christ holding a glass ball in one hand, was sold at Christie’s by Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev on Nov. 15. Since then, the identity of the buyer has been the most sought-after secret.

“This is not your standard art-market story,” art blogger Lee Rosenbaum said today. “You may need to have possession of this crystal ball to be able to predict what happens next.”Katya Kazakina, Nafeesa Syeed, Bloomberg