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The most expensive David ever sold

The most expensive David ever sold is Portrait of Ramel de Nogaret: $7.21 million at Christie's New York in 2008. Famous works such as The Death of Marat, Oath of the Horatii and The Coronation of Napoleon are in public collections, so they are not for sale and have no price.

Lived
1748–1825
From
French
Movement
Neoclassicism
Worked in
Paris · Rome · Brussels
Portrait of Jacques-Louis David
David's record$7.21MPortrait of Ramel de Nogaret · 2008

David's famous works and their prices

  • The Death of Marat by Jacques-Louis DavidThe Death of Marat1793 · Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, BrusselsNot for sale
  • Napoleon Crossing the Alps by Jacques-Louis DavidNapoleon Crossing the Alps1801
  • Oath of the Horatii by Jacques-Louis DavidOath of the Horatii1784 · Musée du Louvre, ParisNot for sale
  • The Coronation of Napoleon by Jacques-Louis DavidThe Coronation of Napoleon1807 · Musée du Louvre, ParisNot for sale

“Not for sale” means a public collection holds the work. Prices are nominal US dollars as reported at the time.

David next to other artists

Each artist's highest documented sale, from the same research.

  1. Velázquez$17MSaint Rufina · 2007
  2. Goya$16.4MPortraits of Doña María Vicenta Barruso Valdés and Doña Leonora Antonia Valdés de Barruso · 2023
  3. El Greco$14MSaint Dominic in Prayer · 2013
  4. Delacroix$9.88MTigre jouant avec une tortue · 2018
  5. Corot$9.01MVenise, vue du Quai des Esclavons · 2018
  6. Waterhouse$9MSt Cecilia · 2000
  7. Cassatt$7.49MYoung Lady in a Loge Gazing to Right · 2022
  8. David$7.21MPortrait of Ramel de Nogaret · 2008
  9. Millais$3.48MSisters · 2013

Bars are to scale within this list. Source for David's record: it.artprice.com.

About Jacques-Louis David

French Neoclassical painter whose severe, sculptural history paintings became the visual language first of the French Revolution and then of Napoleon's empire. "Oath of the Horatii", shown at the Salon of 1785, made his reputation and set Neoclassicism against the lightness of the Rococo. As a deputy in the National Convention he voted for the execution of Louis XVI and directed the republic's art and public festivals, then became Napoleon's official painter after the Empire was proclaimed in 1804. At the Bourbon restoration he left for Brussels in 1816, declining an offer to return as court painter, and spent his last decade there, dying in 1825.

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Questions

What is the most expensive David ever sold?

Portrait of Ramel de Nogaret, which sold for $7.21 million at Christie's New York in 2008. Prices are nominal US dollars as reported at the time.

How much is a David painting worth?

It depends on the work. The highest documented sale is $7.21 million for Portrait of Ramel de Nogaret. Works in public collections are not for sale.

Where can I see David's paintings?

Among the works here: the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels and the Musée du Louvre, Paris.

Who was Jacques-Louis David?

Jacques-Louis David (1748–1825). French Neoclassical painter whose severe, sculptural history paintings became the visual language first of the French Revolution and then of Napoleon's empire. "Oath of the Horatii", shown at the Salon of 1785, made his reputation and set Neoclassicism against the lightness of the Rococo. As a deputy in the National Convention he voted for the execution of Louis XVI and directed the republic's art and public festivals, then became Napoleon's official painter after the Empire was proclaimed in 1804. At the Bourbon restoration he left for Brussels in 1816, declining an offer to return as court painter, and spent his last decade there, dying in 1825.

Other artists