The world's most expensive artwork, *Salvator Mundi*, has been tucked away in a vault in Geneva for years, with its owner, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, dreaming of it becoming the centrepiece of a new art gallery in Saudi Arabia.
This revelation comes from a new BBC documentary, which reports that the painting, sold for a record-breaking £360 million in 2017 after being attributed to Leonardo da Vinci, is currently in the crown prince's possession. Contrary to rumours that it has been adorning the prince's private yacht, one of his confidants confirmed that the painting has been gathering dust in storage since its purchase.
Bernard Haykel, a professor of Near Eastern studies at Princeton University, revealed that the crown prince shared his vision of creating a "very large museum in Riyadh" with *Salvator Mundi
as its "anchor object," attracting millions of tourists. Haykel, speaking in the BBC documentary, *The Kingdom: The World's Most Powerful Prince*, recounted the prince's ambition to replicate the success of the Louvre, claiming that 90% of its visitors come solely to see Leonardo's *Mona Lisa*.
The prince's purchase of the artwork, though never officially confirmed, was also seen as a calculated challenge to Saudi Arabia's conservative Islamic leadership. Haykel suggested that the prince's aim was not only to attract tourists but also to "put another spin on [it] and say this is one of the most important paintings in the western world of Jesus and we own it."
Further corroborating Haykel's claims, Saudi Culture Minister Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan al-Saud confirmed that *Salvator Mundi
has "been in storage in Geneva ever since [its 2017 purchase] â thereâs no truth to it having been hanging on his yacht or in his palace." The minister added that the artwork is "basically waiting for the museum to be completed and then itâll hang in the museum."
The two-part BBC documentary explores the crown prince's meteoric rise to power in one of the world's wealthiest nations and his ambition to transform Saudi Arabia into a cultural powerhouse. His vision has attracted several prominent figures in the art world, including Iwona Blazwick, former director of the Whitechapel Gallery in London, and, most recently, Hartwig Fischer, former director of the British Museum, who have accepted positions in Saudi Arabia.
The 2017 purchase of *Salvator Mundi
at Christie's in New York is arguably the most dramatic art acquisition of the past century. The painting, initially estimated at £80 million, sparked a bidding war that pushed the final price well beyond the previous record for any artwork sold at public auction.
The painting's journey has been a remarkable one. It was acquired in the United States in 2005 for a mere £900. After extensive restoration, it was unveiled at the National Gallery in London in 2011, where it was definitively attributed to Leonardo.
However, the art world remains divided on the extent of Leonardo's involvement in the painting. Many critics point to its inferior quality compared to masterpieces like *Mona Lisa*, suggesting that it was primarily painted by his students or even another artist altogether.
The crown prince's ambitious project, aiming to establish Saudi Arabia as a cultural destination with *Salvator Mundi
as its flagship piece, raises both anticipation and questions about the future of the artwork and its place in the kingdom's evolving cultural landscape.