Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I Auction History

1907–1938: Commissioned by Ferdinand Bloch‑Bauer and completed in 1907; the portrait remained in the Bloch‑Bauer home until 1938 [3].

1938–2006: After the Anschluss, the collection was expropriated; the painting entered the Austrian state collection and was displayed at the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere, where it was euphemistically retitled “Dame in Gold” [1][11]. Legal efforts by Maria Altmann were enabled by the 2004 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Republic of Austria v. Altmann [4], and in 2006 an Austrian arbitration panel ordered restitution of five Klimts to the heirs [5].

2006–present: After a brief U.S. loan display at LACMA (April–June 2006) [6], the heirs sold the portrait privately to Ronald S. Lauder for the Neue Galerie New York; the price was widely reported at $135 million [1][7]. The Neue Galerie lists the work with a credit acknowledging Ronald S. Lauder, the heirs of Ferdinand and Adele Bloch‑Bauer, and the Estée Lauder Fund, and it remains on view there [2].

The 2006 private sale of Klimt’s Portrait of Adele Bloch‑Bauer I to Ronald S. Lauder for the Neue Galerie—widely reported at $135 million—was a watershed for both Klimt’s market and the broader art market, setting a new high-water mark for the price of a painting at the time [1][7]. Because the transaction occurred privately rather than at auction, it underscored how top-tier museum-directed acquisitions and philanthropy can shape market benchmarks even without public bidding. The acquisition immediately established the portrait as the signature icon of the Neue Galerie and cemented its institutional status [1][2].

Equally important is the restitution context. The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2004 decision in Republic of Austria v. Altmann allowed claims to proceed under the FSIA [4], and in 2006 an Austrian arbitration panel ordered restitution of five Klimts to the Bloch‑Bauer heirs [5]. These rulings not only returned the works to their rightful owners but also catalyzed their re-entry into the global market, demonstrating how legal outcomes can unlock major, museum-caliber transactions.

The price impact radiated across Klimt’s market. In November 2006, Portrait of Adele Bloch‑Bauer II achieved $87.9 million at Christie’s New York—the artist’s top auction price at that time and a direct testament to post-restitution demand [8]. In subsequent years, Klimt’s auction ceiling continued to rise: Birch Forest realized $104.585 million at Christie’s in 2022 [9], and Lady with a Fan set a new auction record in 2023 at £85.3m (about $108m), the most expensive artwork sold at auction in Europe [10].

Taken together, these milestones show that while Adele I lacks a public auction record, its 2006 private sale reset valuations for Klimt and previewed sustained, global demand for his rare masterpieces—especially works with landmark provenance and institutional visibility [1][2][7].