Maurizio Cattelan’s “Comedian,” a banana duct-taped to a wall, fetched $6.2 million at a Sotheby’s auction in New York, USA. The price marks a significant increase from its previous valuation. The buyer, Justin Sun, founder of a Chinese cryptocurrency platform, described it as a symbol connecting art, viral trends, and the cryptocurrency world.

Sun plans to eat the banana as part of an artistic experience, saying, “I will honor the work’s place in both art history and popular culture.”

Previously, the artwork gained notoriety when performance artist David Datuna ate the banana after its debut at Art Basel Miami in 2019. A similar incident occurred in 2023 when a South Korean student consumed the banana, citing hunger.