It wasn’t just a banana. It was a banana with a back story.

这不仅是一根香蕉。这是一根有故事的香蕉。

The spectacle on Wednesday evening, when a Sotheby’s auctioneer in Manhattan warned potential bidders not to let Maurizio Cattelan’s fruity artwork “slip away,” ended with a duct-taped banana selling for an astonishing $6.2 million, with fees.

周三晚间这个奇异场面——曼哈顿苏富比拍卖行的拍卖师劝告潜在竞拍者不要让毛里齐奥·卡泰兰的这件水果艺术作品“溜走”，最后的结局是一根缠着胶带的香蕉卖出了620万美元（含佣金）的天价。

A crypto entrepreneur named Justin Sun placed the winning bid from Hong Kong, adding Cattelan’s 2019 conceptual artwork, titled “Comedian,” to the quirky collection he has amassed over the last few years that includes a Giacometti sculpture, a Picasso painting and a very expensive NFT of a pet rock.

一位名叫孙宇晨的加密货币企业家从香港竞标成功，将这个卡泰兰2019年的概念艺术作品《喜剧演员》加入到他过去几年积累的古怪收藏中，这些收藏包括贾科梅蒂的雕塑、毕加索的画作，以及一件极其昂贵的宠物石NFT。

But winning the auction is really just the beginning of the negotiations that will take place over the next month or so (a buyer typically has 30 days to pay, by which time the banana will inevitably blacken and rot). In a phone interview this week, Sun said that he intended to pay for the banana with his own invented cryptocurrency; however, Sotheby’s might only accept payment through more popular forms of digital payment like Bitcoin or Ethereum.

不过，赢得拍卖其实只是未来一个月左右的谈判的开始（买家通常有30天的时间付款，届时香蕉将不可避免地变黑和腐烂）。在本周的一次电话采访中，孙宇晨表示，他打算用自己发明的加密货币来支付；但苏富比可能只接受比特币或以太坊等更流行的数字支付方式。

Here are six questions you might have after seeing the ultrarich wave millions around for a piece of fruit — one that might well spoil from its own success.

在看到超级富豪们为一个水果一掷千金——而这水果很可能会因为自己的成功而变质腐烂——之后，你可能会有以下六个问题：

What does $6.2 million actually get you?

620万美元究竟买到了什么？

加密货币企业家和艺术赞助人孙宇晨。

Contrary to the crypto entrepreneur’s statement that he intended to “personally eat the banana as part of this unique artistic experience,” it would be unlikely that the actual banana presented at Sotheby’s would survive the plane ride to Hong Kong, even if refrigerated.

这位加密货币企业家表示，他打算“亲自吃掉这根香蕉，作为这次独特艺术体验的一部分”，实际上，即使冷藏，在苏富比拍卖行展出的这根香蕉也不太可能在飞往香港的途中保持完好。

In fact, the duct-taped banana is only the physical representation of the conceptual artwork that Cattelan made for the 2019 edition of Art Basel Miami Beach, where it was originally sold for between $120,000 and $150,000.

事实上，胶带香蕉只是卡泰兰为2019年迈阿密海滩巴塞尔艺术博览会制作的概念艺术品的实物代表，其最初售价在12万至15万美元之间。

Conceptual artworks are essentially ideas. What the artist typically sells is a certificate of authenticity and list of instructions for owners about how to maintain or recreate their purchases. Cattelan made three editions of “Comedian.”

概念艺术品本质上是一种理念。艺术家通常售出的是一份鉴定证书和一份说明清单，供拥有者了解如何维护或重新创作他们所购买的作品。卡泰兰制作了三个版本的《喜剧演员》。

Once his payment has cleared with the auction house, Sun will likely inherit the surprisingly detailed, 14-page list of instructions with diagrams that Cattelan has provided other collectors of the banana, including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, which received a version of “Comedian” from an anonymous donor a few years ago.

一旦拍卖行结清款项，孙宇晨很可能会继承卡泰兰提供给其他香蕉收藏者的一份长达14页、出人意料地详尽的说明清单，其中附有图解，其他收藏者包括所罗门·R·古根海姆博物馆，该馆几年前从一位匿名捐赠者那里得到了一版《喜剧演员》。

The instructions include diagrams and an explanation of how the banana should be installed and displayed, including permission to replace the banana when it rots. Lena Stringari, the Guggenheim’s chief conservator at the time, said the instructions were easy to follow; they suggested changing the banana every 7 to 10 days and affixing it about 5 feet 9 inches above the ground.

说明中包括图示，并解释了香蕉的装置和展示方法，包括香蕉腐烂后的更换许可。古根海姆博物馆当时的首席文物保护员莱娜·斯特林加里表示，这些说明很容易遵循；它们建议每7到10天更换一次香蕉，并将香蕉固定在离地面约1.75米的地方。

A fresh roll of silver duct tape is included.

随附一卷新的银色布基胶带。

What does Maurizio Cattelan get from this sale?

毛里奇奥·卡泰兰从这笔交易中得到了什么？

Nothing! Except a lot of attention.

什么都没有！除了很多关注。

Cattelan had already made an undisclosed fee when he originally sold the banana (the work is No. 2 of the three editions the artist made). It is the buyer who then consigned the banana for the Sotheby’s auction. Although artists receive a percentage of resales in countries like the United Kingdom, France and Italy, that’s not the case in the United States, where companies have no similar obligations.

卡泰兰在最初出售这根香蕉时就已经赚取了一笔金额未公开的酬金（这幅作品是艺术家三版作品中的第二版）。当时的买家将香蕉委托给了苏富比拍卖行。尽管在英国、法国和意大利等国家，艺术家会从转售作品中获得一定比例的酬金，但在美国却并非如此，美国拍卖公司没有类似的义务。

In recent years, artists have turned to blockchain tools like NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, to enshrine resale royalties into their sales contracts. Auction houses like Sotheby’s have honored those contracts, even when the broader NFT market has largely abandoned them.

近年来，艺术家们转而使用NFT（非同质化代币）等区块链工具，将转售版税纳入销售合同。苏富比等拍卖行一直遵守这些合同，即使更广泛的NFT市场已经基本放弃了这些合同。

But artworks — whether traditional or unconventional, like “Comedian” — have no provisions that would require a portion of Sun’s payment to be redirected to the artist.

但是，无论是传统艺术作品还是如《喜剧演员》这样的非传统作品，都没有条款规定孙宇晨支付的部分款项必须转给艺术家本人。

“Auction houses and collectors reap the benefits, while the creator, who makes the very object driving the market, is left out,” Cattelan said in an interview before the sale. “NFTs offer royalties with every resale — doesn’t it seem strange that the traditional art market hasn’t adopted a similar system?”

“拍卖行和收藏家从中获利，创作者被排除在外，而正是后者创造了推动市场发展的作品，”卡泰兰在拍卖会前接受采访时说。“NFT在每次转售时都会提供版税，传统艺术市场却没有采用类似的制度，这难道不奇怪吗？”

Why would anyone pay $6.2 million for a banana?

为什么会有人花620万美元买一根香蕉？

According to Sun, “This is not just an artwork; it represents a cultural phenomenon that bridges the worlds of art, memes, and the cryptocurrency community. I believe this piece will inspire more thought and discussion in the future and will become a part of history.”

孙宇晨表示：“这不仅仅是一件艺术品，它代表了一种文化现象，在艺术、米姆和加密货币社区之间架起了一座桥梁。我相信这件作品在未来会引发更多的思考和讨论，并将成为历史的一部分。”

But more generally, participation in the art market provides the ultrarich with cultural clout, self-fulfillment and a sense of community. Building a collection is oftentimes a first step to joining the boards of museums and influential nonprofit groups, where the wealthy can establish their legacies and network with other businesspeople.

但更广泛地说，参与艺术市场为超级富豪提供了文化影响力、自我实现和社区归属感。建立收藏往往是加入博物馆和有影响力的非营利组织董事会的第一步，在这些机构中，富人可以建起流传后世的名声，并与其他商人建立联系。

In recent years, the nouveau riche of the cryptocurrency world and other industries have also purchased artworks to promote themselves and their businesses. Even underbidders, people who fail to secure the winning bid, are often willing to reveal their identities for publicity’s sake. The morning after the “Comedian” sale, two crypto entrepreneurs, Ryan Zurrer and the pseudonymous Cozomo de’Medici, said through a spokeswoman they had also participated in the auction alongside five other groups of bidders who lost the artwork to Sun.

近年来，加密货币世界和其他行业的新贵们也纷纷购买艺术品来宣传自己和自己的业务。即使是低价竞拍者，即未能确保中标的人，也往往愿意为了宣传而透露身份。在《喜剧演员》拍卖会结束后的第二天早上，两位加密货币企业家——瑞安·祖尔勒和科佐莫·德·美第奇（化名）通过一位发言人表示，他们也和其他五组竞拍者一起参加了拍卖会，最终败给了孙宇晨。

How much does a banana cost, again?

 一根香蕉多少钱来着？

At a local fruit stand on Manhattan’s Upper West Side? 25 cents.

在曼哈顿上西区的一个水果摊上？25美分。

The prices were a little steeper at the fruit stand outside Sotheby’s on the Upper East Side, where the auction house sourced its banana. The fruit vendor working there on Wednesday evening, who is from Bangladesh, said that a single banana would cost 35 cents. He was unaware that only a few yards away, his Dole-branded banana would become an artwork valued at $6.2 million.

在上东区苏富比拍卖行外的水果摊上，也就是拍卖行获取香蕉的地方，价格要更贵一些。周三傍晚，一位来自孟加拉国的水果小贩说，一根香蕉的价格是35美分。他不知道的是，就在几米之外，他的都乐牌香蕉将成为一件价值620万美元的艺术品。

Overnight, that means the value of his banana had increased 18 million times. He did not respond to the question of whether his fruit stand would raise its prices.

这意味着，他的香蕉一夜之间价值增加了1800万倍。他没有回答他的水果摊是否会涨价的问题。

Who is Justin Sun?

孙宇晨是谁？

孙宇晨于2021年在伦敦佳士得拍卖行以2000万美元购得毕加索画作《戴项链的卧姿裸女》。

Sun, who is 34, is the founder of Tron, a cryptocurrency. Last year he was charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with the unregistered sale of crypto asset securities, as well as manipulative practices that created the false appearance of strong investor interest for his digital currencies. The commission also accused eight celebrities, including the actress Lindsay Lohan, of illegally promoting Sun’s cryptocurrencies. He has contested the charges, arguing in a court filing that the commission misapplied the law and does not have jurisdiction.

34岁的孙宇晨是加密货币波场(Tron)的创始人。去年，他被美国证券交易委员会指控未注册销售加密资产证券，以及使用操纵行为伪造投资者对其数字货币兴趣浓厚的假象。该委员会还指控包括女演员林赛·罗韩在内的八位名人非法推广孙宇晨的加密货币。孙宇晨对这些指控提出了质疑，他在一份法庭文件中辩称，委员会错误地适用了法律，对本案没有管辖权。

Born in China, Sun also has Grenadian citizenship, and he was for a time Grenada’s ambassador to the World Trade Organization. He still uses the honorific “his excellency” on the website of Tron. In interviews, he has said he became fascinated by the crypto business after studying at the University of Pennsylvania.

出生于中国的孙宇晨还拥有格林纳达国籍，曾一度担任格林纳达驻世界贸易组织大使。在波场的网站上，他仍然使用“阁下”这一尊称。在接受采访时，他说自己是在宾夕法尼亚大学学习后开始对加密货币行业着迷的。

Currently, he works with the art adviser Sydney Xiong, who helped him purchase a $20 million Picasso painting at a 2021 Christie’s auction and a $78.4 million Giacometti sculpture later that year at Sotheby’s. Additionally, the adviser and entrepreneur have worked together on APENFT, a foundation that provides money to artists working to bridge the gap between the traditional and digital art worlds.

目前，他与艺术顾问西德尼·熊（音）合作，后者帮助他在2021年的佳士得拍卖会上购买了一幅2000万美元的毕加索画作，并于同年晚些时候在苏富比拍卖会上购买了7840万美元的贾科梅蒂雕塑。此外，这位顾问和孙宇晨还合作成立了APENFT基金会，为艺术家提供资金，帮助在传统和数字艺术世界之间搭建一座桥梁。

Enough monkeying around. Who believes a banana is actually art?

别闹了。谁会相信香蕉真的是艺术品？

Artists have been pushing the boundaries of what defines art for centuries. A notorious example — and one that undoubtedly inspired Cattelan to conceive of his irreverent banana — comes from the French artist Marcel Duchamp.

几个世纪以来，艺术家们一直在挑战何为艺术的边界。法国艺术家马塞尔·杜尚就是一个著名的例子，无疑也是卡泰兰这根藐视权威的香蕉的灵感来源。

In 1917, Duchamp flipped a urinal onto its back and wrote the fictitious name R. Mutt onto the porcelain, like an artist signature. He declared that the urinal had been turned into a sculpture called “Fountain,” much to the horror of that generation’s traditional art world. The artist also transformed commercial products like rakes, stools, shovels and coat hangers into “ready-mades” that were accepted as artworks simply because he said they were.

1917年，杜尚将一个小便池放倒，在上面写下“R. Mutt”这个虚构的名字，看上去就像一个艺术家签名。他宣称这个小便池已经变成一座名为《喷泉》的雕塑，让当时的传统艺术界惊骇不已。杜尚还将耙子、凳子、铲子和衣架等商业产品改造成“现成品”，仅仅因为他说它们是艺术品，人们就这样接受了。

With his banana, Cattelan was provoking similar questions about the role of public opinion and elite institutions in defining what is and is not art. But he was also calling attention to the art market’s appetite for anything — even a common fruit — that can be marketed and branded as a valid work of art.

卡泰兰用他的香蕉提出了类似的问题，即公众舆论和精英机构在定义什么是、什么不是艺术的过程中所扮演的角色。但他同时也提醒人们注意，艺术市场对一切能当做正经艺术品来推销的东西都感兴趣——哪怕是一根普通的香蕉。