I just reviewed the historical NFT sales records, and there is something that continues to surprise me: the market reached valuations for certain digital works at astronomical figures that seemed impossible just a few years ago.

Pak completely dominated this category. The Merge became the most expensive NFT in the world when it reached $91.8 million in December 2021. The interesting thing is that it wasn't a single piece, but thousands of collectors bought fragments at $575 each. A total of 28,893 people purchased 312,686 units. This distributed sales model was revolutionary at the time.

Beeple also left his mark on the records. Everydays: The First 5000 Days sold for $69 million at Christie's. The artist spent 5,000 days creating a daily work and then compiled them into a massive collage. Vignesh Sundaresan, known as MetaKovan, was the one who bought it using 42,329 ETH.

Then there's Clock, another collaboration by Pak, this time with Julian Assange. A counter that records the days of the WikiLeaks founder's imprisonment. AssangeDAO paid $52.7 million, and the proceeds were allocated to his legal defense. It is perhaps the most expensive NFT in the world with the greatest political and social charge.

Beeple's Human One is fascinating: a 16K kinetic sculpture that operates 24/7. It measures nearly 2 meters, has a dystopian background projected on four walls, and Beeple can update it remotely. It sold for $29 million at Christie's.

Next come the CryptoPunks, which practically defined the collectible market. The #5822 (un Alien Punk azul) alcanzó 23 millones. El #7523 with a medical mask reached $11.75 million. The #4156 (a rare ape) sold for $10.26 million. These numbers reflect how much the market valued extreme scarcity and the project's age.

Axie Infinity and Bored Ape Yacht Club led in total collection volume, but when it comes to individual pieces, the most expensive NFT in the world remains The Merge. Other artists like Dmitri Cherniak with Ringers #109 ($6.93 million) and XCOPY with Right-click and Save As Guy ($7 million) also left their mark.

What’s curious is that 95% of NFTs practically have no value. The market polarized between iconic works by recognized artists and thousands of projects without traction. The total market capitalization of NFTs hovers around $2.6 billion at the beginning of 2026.

Each of these works has its own story: some were born from political activism, others from pure artistic experimentation, some combined physical and digital technology. It represents a specific moment when the market believed that digital art could be worth as much as traditional physical works. If you want to explore these trends or see how the market evolved, Gate has tools to track these movements.