by opponents of the sale), and followed the guidelines of the American Alliance of Museums, according to Albright-Knox officials. Nevertheless, announcement of the sale set off a firestorm of dissent. The sale raised questions about how museums can remain vital when they are situated in economically declining regions and have limited means for raising funds for operations and acquisitions. Auction The sculpture was auctioned at Sotheby's New York by Hugh Hildesley on 7 June 2007. Estimated to reach between $5 and $7 million, Artemis and the Stag broke records when it was sold for $28.6 million. It became the most valuable sculpture ever sold at auction, breaking the 2005 record of $27.4 million for Constantin Brâncuși's Bird in Space''. The sale price has since been surpassed by several modern works, but the only other sculpture from antiquity to fetch a higher price is the Guennol Lioness. The winning bidder remained anonymous, employing art dealer Giuseppe Eskenazi to complete the auction. In January 2008 the sculpture was initially lent to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for six months, and it remains on display there as of October 2019. See also List of most expensive sculptures References Hellenistic and Roman bronzes Albright–Knox Art Gallery Deer in art Sculptures of Artemis