• 18-karat gold toilet sold for $12.1 million at international auction
• The piece reflects artist Maurizio Cattelan’s satirical take on wealth and luxury

A fully functional 18-karat gold toilet was sold for $12.1 million at an art auction. The work was created by the controversial artist Maurizio Cattelan, also known for his famous piece where a banana was duct-taped to a wall.

Weighing around 223 pounds, the toilet, named “America,” had a starting bid of $10 million, equivalent to the value of the gold used in its construction.

The toilet functions like a normal one and was previously displayed for public viewing before the auction, though visitors were not allowed to use it.

Cattelan said the work aims to satirize extreme wealth in the U.S., noting that the idea is to place something “priceless” in the “least noble and most necessary place” to highlight the contrast between luxury and basic functionality.

The toilet was previously owned by an anonymous collector. Cattelan made two versions in 2016, one of which was briefly displayed at a New York museum.

Later, the museum jokingly offered to lend it to former U.S. President Donald Trump after his request to borrow a Van Gogh painting.

The piece later traveled to Blenheim Palace in the U.K., where it was stolen. Despite two convictions related to the theft, the police were unable to recover the toilet, believing it may have been dismantled and melted, similar to recent jewelry thefts at the Louvre.

Cattelan’s previous works include “Comedian,” the duct-taped banana, which gained global attention and sold for $6 million.