The American magazine TIME sold three of its own covers in non-fungible token (NFT) format for 241 ETH (about $385,000 at the time of writing).
The auctions took place on the SuperRare marketplace. The owner of the three NFTs was a user with the pseudonym mondoir1. He paid for the covers:
- “God Is Dead?” — 70 ETH (about $112,000 at the time of writing);
- “Truth Is Dead?” — 88 ETH (~$141,000);
- “Fiat Is Dead?” — 83 ETH (~$133,000).
The lots are based on a series of provocative covers. The first, with the text “God Is Dead?” was published on April 8, 1966. The magazine noted that TIME first used a cover consisting solely of text, without an image.
The second NFT “Truth Is Dead?” was published on April 3, 2017 — about two and a half months after the inauguration of former U.S. President Donald Trump.
The third cover “Fiat Is Dead?” was created specifically for the auction. Its authors contrasted cryptocurrencies with fiat money. TIME cited Bitcoin and Dogecoin as examples of digital assets.
Earlier, The New York Times journalist Kevin Roose put up for sale his new column about NFT in the form of NFT. The highest bid was 21 ETH (about $33,600 at the time of writing).