Christie’s to Offer Blockchain-Based Ownership Certificates for Photography Collection

• Christie’s will offer blockchain-based certificates of ownership for a photography collection it is auctioning.

• Christie’s involvement in blockchain-based innovations goes back to 2021, when it auctioned digital artist Beeple’s “Everyday” collection for $69 million.

Christie’s is again experimenting with blockchain-based technology by issuing digital certificates of ownership for a photograph collection by Trevor Traina, the founder of wallet provider Kresus and former U.S. ambassador to Austria.

The auction house’s sale of “An Eye Towards the Real: Photographs from the Collection of Ambassador Trevor Traina,” on Wednesday at the Rockefeller Center in New York will issue digital certificates for each of the 130 lots. The ownership certificates will be minted by Kresus on Base, the Ethereum layer-2 blockchain developed by Coinbase (COIN).

“This pilot program marks a significant step forward in the art world’s adoption of blockchain technology, aligning physical works with digital certificates to ensure transparency and security for art collectors,” Christie’s and Kresus said in an emailed announcement on Wednesday.

Christie’s involvement in blockchain-based innovations goes back to 2021, when it auctioned digital artist Beeple’s “Everyday” collection for $69 million, at the time the most expensive non-fungible token (NFT) ever sold.