Ross Ulbricht’s debut NFT sold for $6.2M at auction

After announcing the launch of his “Genesis Collection” nonfungible token (NFT) auction, Ross Ulbricht, the alleged founder of dark web marketplace Silk Road, has sold his first NFT for $6.2 million or 1,446 Ether (ETH) at auction.

The auction kicked off at Art Basel Miami via the SuperRare platform. FreeRossDAO, the decentralized autonomous organization set up to help free Ulbricht from imprisonment, placed the winning bid. The FreeRossDAO website states that the DAO aims to “advance prison reform” and to “share Ross’s work with the world and give everyone a unique opportunity to own a piece of it.”

The first NFT sold, called “Perspective,” was drawn in prison using graphite pencil and is part of a 10-piece collection of writings and artworks made by Ulbrict throughout his life. The collection also includes an animated video made by audiovisual artist Levitate and with a voiceover by Ulbricht about his time in prison.

All proceeds raised from the “Genesis Collection” will go towards the Art4Giving fund, a donor-advised trust created by the FreeRossDao as a legal entity to fund new legal proceedings and raise awareness, according to the organization.

FreeRossDAO plans to fractionalize the NFT into ROSS governance tokens and distribute them pro-rata in return for donor contributions. ROSS holders will be able to vote on proposals and participate in the guidance of FreeRossDAO.

Ulbricht’s NFT ranks among the largest sales within the last seven days, as recorded by NonFungible.