Ripley's Acquires $12M Golden Toilet Stolen from Blenheim Palace

Sun Nov 30 2025 21:29:17 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Ripley's Believe It or Not! has revealed itself as the buyer of the infamous golden toilet, America, which sold for $12.1 million at Sotheby's auction. This art piece, created by Maurizio Cattelan, was previously stolen in 2019.

Ripley's Believe It or Not! confirmed it purchased the $12.1 million golden toilet, created by artist Maurizio Cattelan, at a Sotheby's auction. The toilet, named America, is a fully functional piece made of solid 18-carat gold and had previously been stolen from Blenheim Palace. The artwork garnered attention for its price and unique nature, further drawing interest as Ripley's considers how to display it.

A gold toilet that fetched $12.1m (£9.3m) at auction was bought by Ripley's Believe It or Not!, after its first casting was stolen from Blenheim Palace in 2019.

The artwork, America, created by Italian conceptual artist Maurizio Cattelan, is a fully functional toilet made from over 15 stones and 13 pounds (101.2 kg) of solid 18-carat gold.

The first version was initially installed in a public bathroom at the Guggenheim Museum in New York in 2016 but made headlines in 2019 when it was stolen by a gang from the Oxfordshire palace.

A second golden toilet was later revealed and sold at Sotheby's in New York City on Tuesday, with the auction receiving just one bid.

Sotheby's announced that the starting bid would be based on the price of its weight in gold, estimated at about $10m (£7.6m).

While it was only identified as being bought by a famous American brand initially, Ripley's confirmed they were the mystery buyer via an Instagram post, exclaiming, we're flush with excitement.
The company manages various attractions, including museums of oddities around the globe. They previously drew attention for allowing Kim Kardashian to wear an iconic dress by Marilyn Monroe at the Met Gala.

Currently, Ripley's team is discussing whether guests can experience using the ultimate golden seat, requiring meticulous planning to ensure everything keeps flowing in the right direction.

The artwork achieved the second-highest auction price for a Cattelan piece, following a prior instance where one of his sculptures of a kneeling Hitler sold for $17.2m (£11.9m). Notably, over 100,000 people used the original toilet while displayed in the Guggenheim before it was moved to Blenheim.

In the early hours of September 14, 2019, five men broke in to steal the gold installation, fleeing in a stolen Volkswagen Golf, a case that secured international attention.

James Sheen, 40, from Oxford, pleaded guilty to burglary. Michael Jones, 39, was found guilty in March. Fred Doe, 36, also faced legal repercussions related to the incident.

Sotheby's noted that Cattelan created three toilets in 2016, with the second version on display until its sale. The auction house deemed it a cultural phenomenon and a provocative reflection on the art market's complexities. David Galperin from Sotheby's described it as a tour de force, raising critical questions about art and value.

In the same auction event, a Gustav Klimt portrait sold for an astounding $236.4m (£179m), marking the second-highest sale for an artwork ever.