With NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) being all the rage this year, auction house Christie’s has sold a collection of CryptoPunks for record prices.
CryptoPunks were one of the first NFTs to be introduced into the crypto market, back in 2017. These 24×24 pixel avatars are completely different from each other (and hence, they function as NFTs), and have managed to garner an impressive sum of almost $17 million during the auction on Tuesday.
Meant to be Free, CryptoPunks Now Sell for Millions
The auction marks how far CryptoPunks have come since their introduction almost four years ago. Back then, creators Matt Hall and John Watkinson, the names behind Larva Labs, had planned to distribute all 10,000 of the original the avatars for free. These giveaways were rapidly claimed by enthusiasts.
Out of these 10,000, only 1,000 remained with Watkinson and Hall. And from these 1,000, nine were taken up by Christie’s for the auction. These nine punks included three “males”, five “females”, and one “alien” punk.
Each of them is completely unique, and has been designed to act as collectibles, giving exclusive bragging rights to owners. The alien punk, for example, is one among nine rare aliens in the CryptoPunk universe, and even each of these 9 aliens is completely unique from the rest.
Alien Punks seems to be immensely popular among collectors, as two aliens have sold for over $7.5 million apiece. Seven other Punks have each garnered more than $1 million, and the past 30 days alone have seen CryptoPunk sales worth a total $102 million.
NFTs (and CryptoPunks in particular) become popular auction items
This auction was one among many CryptoPunk sales that have been taking place all over the online network these days. Amid the growing surge in NFTs, CryptoPunk sellers have been earning millions in exchange for the collectibles, which were valued at barely between $1 to $30, at the time of their launch.
This also isn’t the first time that Christie’s has basked in the glory of NFTs. The auction house had earlier auctioned the digital artwork “Everydays: The First 5000 Days”, by Beeple, earning more than $69 million in the process.
