Sotheby's banana market value exceeds ten million, is the Meme sector starting to play with art?

Author: Deep Tide TechFolw

The Meme market over the weekend is also bustling. In the past two days, the topic that on-chain players have been deeply engaged with may not be various AI Memes, but rather a piece of art being re-auctioned by Sotheby's------the tape banana.

On Friday night, a Meme called $Ban, centered around the banana art piece auctioned by Sotheby's, broke through the crowd of AI themes, reaching a market cap of nearly 20 million dollars within 24 hours of its launch.

Is this a spur-of-the-moment idea from a conspiracy group or a new hype chosen by the market? We have compiled some information to help you quickly understand the journey of this magical banana's price surge.

Abstract Art Makes a Comeback

In 2019, the Italian artist Cattelan's tape + banana series was auctioned at Sotheby's, where the banana named "Comedian" sold for 120,000 dollars, sparking heated discussions on social media.

Initially, this abstract artistic act undoubtedly drew ridicule from society, with comments like "fools have money" and "respect and blessings" prevailing. Eventually, it evolved into a trend where everyone enjoyed playing with this banana as a form of trendy art, as replicating this artwork required no cost—just a piece of tape and a banana could recreate the joy of a 120,000-dollar piece. Even the doge Elon Musk was playing with this banana meme at the time:

Recently, Sotheby's announced the re-auction of one of the three "versions" of this artwork, with an estimated auction price between 1 million and 1.5 million dollars (it seems the art market is also experiencing inflation).

The Auction is Abstract, and Memes Follow Suit

Sotheby's Vice President at the Helm?

So how did this banana spread to the Meme market? According to my initial impression, around 11 PM on Friday, an on-chain hunter pointed out that GMGN.AI showed that one of the major holders of the Solana chain banana concept coin $Ban was Sotheby's Vice President Michael Bouhanna (@michaelbouhanna), holding 3.78% of the total supply.

Earlier that day, this vice president personally tweeted to promote this banana, stating, "For me, this is the most important work of the 21st century." Coupled with his previous release of his wallet address, it seemed to further validate the rationale behind "Sotheby's Vice President personally overseeing the Meme."

At that time, the market cap of $Ban was around 100,000 dollars. Once the news broke, $Ban surged, reaching a peak market cap of about 7 million dollars within an hour, with a maximum increase of nearly 70 times.

Vice President's Chaotic Operations, Coin Price Takes a Rollercoaster Ride

The one-hour 70-fold surge of the wild banana brought joy to the on-chain community, but the subsequent series of chaotic operations by the vice president caused the coin price to fluctuate wildly, leaving many early investors with little left in their hands.

Price Peak Tweet Deletion Leads to Panic Selling

Some Twitter users, to further verify the story's credibility, asked Michael Bouhanna whether the related address was indeed his. Perhaps feeling a bit guilty or not wanting to cause unnecessary impact, Michael Bouhanna deleted the tweet revealing his wallet address during the peak of the hype.

$Ban immediately began to plummet, with its market cap dropping from 7 million dollars to around 400,000 dollars. Few knew about it when it was rising, but when it started to fall, the screen was filled with $Ban banana jokes.

Attending Binance Conference, Official Twitter Changes Avatar, Coin Price Recovers?

After a series of ups and downs, the market's enthusiasm for the banana hype gradually cooled. The next night, the coin price performed flatly but did not directly head towards zero.

By day, the coin price even rose back to its previous high, only to gradually decline without any positive stimulus. Around 8 PM, Vice President Michael Bouhanna announced on Twitter that he would attend the Binance conference as a Sotheby's executive. Meanwhile, it was noticed that Sotheby's official account changed its avatar to an image featuring the tape banana element.

Stimulated by this series of actions, the price of $Ban revived on Saturday night. Perhaps the market makers had absorbed enough chips through this pull and wash, or the market's confidence in the tape banana reignited, leading to a renewed price surge for $Ban, continuously breaking previous highs.

As of the time of writing, the highest market cap of $Ban has reached 25 million dollars.

The Magic Board Has Emerged, A Grand Showcase of Banana Concepts

Whether it's the market's excitement or the careful manipulation by the market makers, a market cap of 25 million represents that the banana concept has been preliminarily recognized by the market. Besides the leading token, there are also many imitators. What angles are currently being hyped in the banana concept? Deep Tide has compiled a brief overview ranked by market cap.

Note: Meme token prices are highly volatile and carry significant risks. Investors should fully assess risks and participate cautiously. This article is merely a sharing of information based on market trends, and the author and platform do not guarantee the completeness or accuracy of the content. This article does not constitute any investment advice.

Comedian ($Ban) - The Main Character of This Article, Concept Leader

Contract Address: 9PR7nCP9DpcUotnDPVLUBUZKu5WAYkwrCUx9wDnSpump

24H Trading Volume: 33 million dollars

Current Market Cap: 21.6 million dollars

Highest Market Cap: 25 million dollars

The main character of the concept, the banana Comedian, token name $Ban.

Comedian ($Pan) - "Tape + Pepe" Concept, Focused on a Stitch

Contract Address: 9JLsnxCqZju5ymLhMkTW6acnUxgrARqz5NAR7Acdpump

24H Trading Volume: 2.5 million dollars

Current Market Cap: 400,000 dollars

Highest Market Cap: 880,000 dollars

Whenever a target becomes popular, the stitchers may arrive late but will eventually come. On Saturday night, while $Ban surged, a project using the Pepe + tape concept to ride the wave also directly pumped, with a rather peculiar angle, and the price performance suggests a strong conspiracy flavor.

As of the time of writing, the price has seen a significant drop.

ANANAB ($ANANAB) - Role Reversal, Wrapped in Tape

Contract Address: HaqNyHMwCP1YGCYgjY7kJNVd6gv4mz1Y75A4xKVUpump

24H Trading Volume: 880,000 dollars

Current Market Cap: 110,000 dollars

Highest Market Cap: 200,000 dollars

In contrast to the banana concept on the wall, the image shows a person wrapped in tape on the wall, while the observer is the banana. The image likely originated from the initial hype of the tape banana in 2019, used to satirize those who hype the banana.

Banana D ($Comedian) - The "Real Name" Concept of Banana

Contract Address: BpqXJMguKsS8azKaVy4tZ4Ysm2e2f2zygZKHx8VKGKBA

24H Trading Volume: 1 million dollars

Current Market Cap: 90,000 dollars

Highest Market Cap: 250,000 dollars

In contrast to the leading token $Ban, this token uses the banana's real name Comedian as its token symbol. The angle seems correct, but from the price performance, it appears that players are not very interested.

Sotheby' ($Sothebys) - Sotheby's Avatar Change Concept

Contract Address: 83UCt6BueiwNE5NKtXyJ5SmRDWFWSzibLaxmV3xapump

24H Trading Volume: 380,000 dollars

Current Market Cap: 16,400 dollars

Highest Market Cap: 110,000 dollars

The concept is simple and easy to understand, but the angle is somewhat off, and the price performance is average. GMGN.AI shows a 100% chance of exit scams, suggesting it is a flow project by the developer riding the hype, only for observation, not recommended for participation.

Conclusion

After a day of price surges, washes, and further surges, the market cap of $Ban has far exceeded the auction estimate of the artwork itself. This "banana craze" has already shown a certain trend, with various angles keeping up in a timely manner. As for whether the subsequent hype will spread to Sotheby's/art concepts or the banana itself or even the president himself, we will wait and see.

However, the violent washout of $Ban in the early stages also indicates that in the face of an increasingly "smart" market, hitting the golden dog, holding the golden dog, and successfully profiting from selling the golden dog have become completely independent matters. Each step of the game and execution requires enormous effort, and high-profit addresses often arise because of "high increases" rather than "heavy positions." The same old advice applies: manage your position and emotions well, avoid FOMO, and your opportunities will always be there.