In a spectacle that blurs the line between luxury, satire, and high art, a fully functioning toilet made of solid 18-karat gold—aptly titled "America"—is set to be auctioned at Sotheby’s Breuer Building in New York on November 18, 2025. The starting bid? A staggering $10 million, reflecting not only the current price of over 101 kilograms (223 pounds) of gold but also the cultural weight of the piece itself.
Created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan in 2016, "America" is no ordinary bathroom fixture. It has become a global phenomenon, raising eyebrows, sparking debate, and even inspiring criminal intrigue. According to the Associated Press, Sotheby’s describes the work as an "incisive commentary on the collision of artistic production and commodity value." And indeed, the toilet’s journey from museum installation to auction block is as layered as the questions it poses about wealth, value, and the very nature of art.
Two versions of "America" were crafted by Cattelan. The one up for auction has been privately owned since 2017, while the other made headlines for its public installations and an infamous heist. When first unveiled at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, the golden toilet was plumbed in and open for use—more than 100,000 museum-goers queued up, booking three-minute appointments to experience the work firsthand. The spectacle was not lost on the artist, who once quipped, "Whatever you eat, a $200 lunch or a $2 hot dog, the results are the same, toilet-wise." (India.com)
But the story only gets stranger. In 2017, the Guggenheim famously offered to loan "America" to then-U.S. President Donald Trump, after he requested a Van Gogh painting. The toilet, however, soon embarked on a new chapter overseas. In 2019, it was loaned to Blenheim Palace in England—the birthplace of Winston Churchill—where it was again installed for public use. Yet within days, thieves executed what Judge Ian Pringle KC would later call a "bold and brazen heist." The burglars broke in, forcibly removed the toilet from the plumbing, and escaped, causing a flood in the process. Security footage captured the dramatic theft, showing two vehicles driving through the Great Courtyard and a burglar carrying the golden seat out of the palace.
The aftermath was equally dramatic. According to The Guardian, James Sheen, 40, was sentenced to four years in jail, while Michael Jones, 39, received a 27-month sentence; a third man, Fred Doe, was convicted of conspiracy to transfer criminal property and given a suspended sentence. Despite the convictions, the golden toilet was never recovered. Investigators believe it was likely broken up and melted down to obscure its origins and maximize its gold value.
"Both the planning and execution were incredibly basic, effective, but basic. Although it was brazen, it was not sophisticated," said defense counsel Jeffrey Israel during the trial. The theft, while not "the heist of the century," as Cattelan himself conceded, was certainly one of the most bizarre art crimes in recent memory. (Parade, The Guardian)
With the auction on the horizon, Sotheby’s is hoping "America" will do more than just make headlines—it could help revitalize a contemporary art market where supply has recently outstripped demand. David Galperin, head of contemporary art at Sotheby’s New York, calls Cattelan "the consummate art world provocateur." Galperin notes that while Cattelan’s notorious banana sculpture "Comedian" fetched $6.2 million at auction last year, "America" stands as its "perfect foil." "‘America’ is in many ways the complete inverse of that. It is a perfect foil in that this work has a lot of intrinsic value in a way that most artworks do not. The question of the proportion of value between the raw materials and the artistic idea is very on the table here," Galperin told the Associated Press.
Indeed, the toilet’s value is both literal and symbolic. While most contemporary art draws value from authorship and concept, "America" is also worth its weight in gold—literally. The starting bid is pegged to the current gold price, ensuring that, at the very least, the buyer walks away with a treasure chest’s worth of precious metal. But is it just a golden commodity, or something more?
Cattelan’s work has never shied from controversy or humor. His earlier piece, "Comedian," famously consisted of a banana duct-taped to a wall, igniting debates about the boundaries of art. "America" continues this tradition, holding up what Galperin describes as "both a proverbial and literal mirror to the art world." The toilet, with its Duchampian echoes, confronts "the most uncomfortable questions about art, and the belief systems held sacred to the institutions of the market and the museum," Galperin said. (The Guardian)
Sotheby’s will display "America" at its Breuer Building headquarters from November 8 until the auction on November 18. This time, however, the public won’t be able to use the toilet—it will be on view only. Visitors can look, but they can’t flush. The spectacle, though, remains: a golden toilet, guarded and gleaming, awaiting the highest bidder in a city that knows a thing or two about spectacle.
The excitement around the auction is palpable. Some see it as a playful jab at excess and consumerism, others as a serious meditation on value and meaning in art. Cattelan himself has said the work is a satire of excessive wealth, and the title "America" invites interpretations ranging from the personal to the political. As David Galperin put it, "Holding both a proverbial and literal mirror to the art world, the work confronts the most uncomfortable questions about art, and the belief systems held sacred to the institutions of the market and the museum." (The Guardian)
As the November 18 auction approaches, the world watches to see who will claim the world’s most valuable—and perhaps most provocative—toilet. Will it fetch more than its weight in gold? Or will its ultimate value be measured in the conversations and controversies it continues to spark? Either way, "America" stands as a gleaming testament to the strange, shimmering intersection of art, wealth, and human nature.
