Sold by Sotheby’s for a staggering $236.4 million, ‘Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer’ survived Nazi looting and became the key to its subject’s survival

The top lot of the week was a Klimt portrait from the collection of Leonard Lauder at Sotheby's. It set a new auction record for the artist.

A Gustav Klimt portrait painting that helped save the life of its Jewish subject during the Holocaust sold Tuesday for $236.4 million, a record for a modern art piece.

Other offerings in the Sotheby’s sale include six bronze sculpture from Henri Mattise, which could earn $30 million altogether on the block, and Sankthansnatt Johannisnacht (Mittsommernacht) (St. John’s Night) (Midsummer Night’s Eve) by Edvard Munch, an oil-on-canvas painting that is anticipated to sell for over $20 million.

Artist Gustav Klimt’s ‘Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer’ hung in the home of a billionaire for decades; now it’s expected to smash auction records.