Photo credit: X

Tron founder Justin Sun has made headlines after spending $6.2 million at a New York auction on a piece of art featuring a banana duct-taped to a wall.

Sun, who shared the news on Nov. 21, revealed that he plans to eat the banana as part of an artistic experience, emphasizing the artwork's significance as a cultural phenomenon that bridges art, memes, and the cryptocurrency community.

The artwork in question is "Comedian" by Maurizio Cattelan, which is essentially a fresh banana taped to a wall with duct tape. The unique aspect of this piece is that the banana and tape can be replaced as they deteriorate over time.

What Sun has actually paid for is the certificate of authenticity and instructions on how to recreate the artwork.

The auction, hosted by Sotheby’s, saw over six minutes of intense bidding, starting at $800,000 and quickly escalating to millions.

The auctioneer added some humor to the event, joking about the artwork slipping through the auction room and urging bidders not to let it slip away. Ultimately, Sun's winning bid was $5.2 million, plus an additional $1 million in Sotheby’s fees, far exceeding the presale estimate of $1 million to $1.5 million.

Sun's acquisition comes amid various legal challenges. His blockchain processes a significant portion of the volume for Tether, the world’s largest stablecoin, which is reportedly under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department.

Additionally, Sun himself has been under investigation by the FBI and New York prosecutors. In March 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Sun and Tron, alleging that the Tron token was sold as an unregistered security and that wash-trading was used to manipulate its price, charges that Sun denies.

If Sun follows through with his plan to eat the banana, he will join a small group of individuals who have consumed this peculiar artwork.

In April last year, a student ate the banana while it was on display in a Seoul art museum, later taping the peel back onto the wall and explaining he was hungry after skipping breakfast.

The first incident occurred when artist David Datuna ate the banana after it sold for $120,000 at its 2019 debut at Miami Art Basel. The banana was replaced afterward, and Datuna did not face legal repercussions.

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