10 Most Expensive Paintings In The World

10. "Tryptich" ($86.3 million)

Painting by : Francis Bacon, 1976
Sold for $86.3 million at Sotheby's New York  in May 2008.
Buyer : European private.
Francis Bacon is one of the most sought-after names in the Art market, and this work easily surpassed its impressive $70 million pre-sale estimate.

9. "Adele Bloch-bauer II' ($87.9 million)

Painting by : Gustav Klimt, 1912
Sold for $87.9 million at Christie's New York in November 2006.
Buyer: unknown
Sold only a few months later than Klimt's first version of Adele, this extremely appealing canvas was the star lot in a highly succesful auction in which four works by Klimt -including this- totalled a stunning $192 million.

8. "Diana and Actaeon"  ($91 million)

Painting by : Titian, 1556-1559
Sold for $91 million in a private sale, February 2009.
Buyer: United Kingdom
This work have all the splendour and glory of the best of Titian's 'painted poetries'. It was previously at the Duke of Sutherland collection, who offered it to the U.K. It has a "sister picture", "Diana and Callisto"

7. "Dora Maar au chat" ($95.2 million)

Painting by : Pablo Picasso, 1941
Sold for $95.2 million at Sotheby's New York , May 2006.
Buyer: anonymous
Dora Maar (1907-1997) met Picasso in 1930, and their relationship lasted until 1946. A native from Paris, raised in Argentina and therefore fluent in Spanish, Maar was one of Picasso's favourite models. This painting, measuring 130- 97 cm, was recently rediscovered and authenticated by Picasso's daughter, Maya Widmaier Picasso.

6. "Eight Elvises" ($100 million)

Painting by : Andy Warhol, 1963
Sold for $100 million in a private sale, 2008. Buyer: anonymous
This unique work by Warhol, measuring over 12 feet long, had been at the collection of Roman collector Annibale Berlingieri for over 40 years. It surpassed the previous world record for a work by Warhol, the $71.7 million paid at Christie's New York in 2007 for "Green Car Crash (Green Burning Car I)"

5. "Garçon a la pipe" (sold for $104.1 million)

Painting by : Pablo Picasso, 1904
Sold for $104.1 million at Sotheby's New York , May 2004.
Buyer: anonymous
The sale of this young smoker was a milestone in the Art auctions world. It broke the record that Vincent van Gogh held since 1990, and it was the first time that the $100 million barrier was broken. Although the name of the buyer was not revealed, some sources says that he could be Guido Barilla, the Italian pasta magnate.

4. "Nude, Green Leaves and Bust" ($106.5 million)

Painting by : Pablo Picasso, 1932
Sold for $106.5 million at Christie's New York , May 2010.
Buyer: anonymous
This sensual and colorful masterpiece by Picasso is the most expensive painting ever sold at auction. The work, formerly in the collection of Mrs. Sidney F. Brody, had been never exhibited in public since 1961.

3. "Adele Bloch-bauer I" ($135 million)

Painting by : Gustav Klimt, 1907
Sold for $135 million in a private sale, 2006.
Buyer: Ronald Lauder.
The acquisition of this iconic work by cosmetic magnate Ronald Lauder caused a shock in the art world, not only for the spectacular sum paid for it, but also for the way it was sold, far away from the noisy auction houses. The painting was part of a group of five canvases which had been recently returned to the heirs of Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer. The Nazis confiscated his paintings during the World War II, and after the war, the canvases were placed at the National Gallery of Austria in 1948.

2. "Woman III" ($137.5 million)

Painting by : Willem De Kooning, 1952-53
Sold for $137.5 million in a private sale, 2006.
Seller: David Geffen / Buyer: Steven Cohen
Pollock first. De Kooning second. The inmediate conclusion is that American abstract expressionism has displaced Impressionism as the most sought-after Art period. This painting is the only "Woman" by Willem de Kooning still in private hands. One of this women -described by T. Hess as "black goddesses"- has been chosen by theartwolf.com as one of the 50 masterworks of the history of painting.

1. "Number 5, 1948" ($140 million)

Painting by : Jackson Pollock, 1948
Sold for $140 million in a private sale, 2006.
Seller: David Geffen / Buyer : Unknown (rumoured to be Mexican businessman David Martinez)
Right now, this stunning "drip" by Jackson Pollock is the most expensive painting ever sold, though the exact price was never confirmed (but the price displayed here is generally accepted to be true). The exorbitant sum demonstrates not only the strenght of the Art market, but also the increasing interest for the contemporary works of Art.

10 Biggest Libraries in The World

10. Yale University Library (USA) (13,000,000 books)

Yale University Library is the library system of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1701. It is one of the largest academic library in the world, with approximately 13,000,000 volumes housed in 22 individual libraries. Several of its collections rank among the best anywhere and attract scholars from around the globe.

9. National Diet Library, Tokyo (Japan) (14,304,139 books)

National Diet library is the one of the largest and greatest libraries of the world, located in Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1948 for the purpose of researching matters of public policy. There are over (14,304,139) books of all types. It has 27 branches in the country. Books on all topics like science, religion, politics, laws, maps, music etc, are available in this library.

8. New York Public Library (USA) (14,685,192 books)

 

The New York Public Library is situated in New York city. It was founded in 1895 and now it has 87 branches. Its books collection is over 14,685,192.

7. Russian State Library, Moscow (Russia) (14,750,000 books)


Russian State Library is the national library of Russia. It is located in Moscow and was founded in 1795. It is the largest and the oldest library in the country and the seventh largest in the world. Its books collection is over (14,750,000). This is the most popular or famous library in Russia.

6. Harvard University Library (USA) (15,000,000 books)

Harvard University Library system comprises about 90 libraries, with more than (15,000,000) books. It is the oldest library system in the United States and one of  the largest academic library system in the world. It is the sixth largest library in the world. It was founded in 1638.

5. British Library, London (UK) (23,500,000 books)

British Library is the national library of the UK, which was founded in 1753. It is based in London and  one of the world’s most significant research libraries, holding over (15,500,000) items in all known languages and formats. The Library’s collections include around 23,500,000 books. BL includes almost three million books every year in its archives.

4. Deutsche Bibliothek (Germany) (24,487,010 books)

Deutsche Bibliothek is the national library of Germany which was established in 1912. The prime purpose of this library is to collect all the German publications and collection of all material published on Germany in other languages. It is the third largest or biggest library in the world as it has 24,487,010 items.

3. National Library Of Canada (Canada) (26,006,054 books)

National Library Canada is a Canadian federal government department responsible for the collection and preservation of the documentary heritage of Canada through texts, pictures and other documents relevant to the history and culture of Canada. Its books collection is over (26,006,054) and this is the third largest library in the world. This most beautiful library is the national asset of Canada.

2. National Library of China (China) (28,980,777 books)


National Library of China is the largest and great library of Asia, and second biggest library of the World. It’s collection is over 28,980,777 books which includes individually counted periodicals of about 12 million. It holds the largest worldwide collection of Chinese literature. The Library was founded in 1909 in Beijing, China and all the books on China’s history are available in the library.

1. Congress Libraries,  Washington (USA) (33,012,750 books)

Congress Libraries is the largest or biggest library in the world. It has the largest number of books, recordings, maps and manuscripts which are over 33,012,750 in number. Situated in Washington D.C, this is the oldest library of USA. It was established in 1800, when President John Adams signed a bill providing for the transfer of the seat of government from Philadelphia to the new capital city of Washington.

10 Largest Dams In The World

10. Oahe Dam, South Dakota (USA) (70,339 cubic meters)

The Oahe Dam is a large dam along the Missouri River, just north of Pierre, South Dakota in the United States. It creates Lake Oahe, the fourth largest artificial reservoir  in the United States, which stretches 231 miles (372 km) up the course of the Missouri to Bismarck, North Dakota. The dam’s powerplant provides electricity for much of the north-central United States. It is named for the Oahe Indian Mission established among the Lakota Sioux in 1874. The project provides flood control, electric power, irrigation, and navigation benefits, estimated by the Corps of Engineers at $150,000,000 per year.

9. Guri (Raúl Leoni) (Venezuela) (78,000 cubic meters)

 

The Guri Dam is a large dam in Bolívar State, Venezuela  on the Caroni River. It is 1300 meters long and 162 m high. Construction began in 1963; the first part concluded in 1978 and the second in 1986. The Hydroelectric Power station Guri was constructed in the Necuima Canyon, 100 kilometers waters above of the mouth of the Caroní River in the Orinoco. There are two machine rooms with ten generators each, producing a total of 87 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity. As of 2009, the hydroelectric plant is the third-largest in the world, with 10,200 MW capacity.

8. Yacyretá-Apipe, (Paraguay/Argentina) (81,000 cubic meter)

 

The dam was built over the waterfalls of Jasyretâ-Apipé in the Paraná River, between the Argentine Province of Corrientes and the Paraguayan  department of Misiones. The dam is named for Yacyretâ Island just upstream, much of which the dam submerged. The dam is 808 meters long, and its installed equipment has a maximum power output of 4,050 MW, with an annual maximum power output of 19,080 GWh, and a maximum water flow rate of 55,000 cubic meters per second. However, because its reservoir is seven meters below its planned water level, the dam currently operates at only 60% capacity.

7. Atatürk Dam (Turkey) (84,500 cubic meters)

 

The Atatürk Dam is a zoned rock-fill dam with a central core on the Euphrates River on the border of Adyaman Province and Anlurfa Province in Southeastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. Built both to generate electricity and to irrigate the plains in the region. The construction began in 1983 and was completed in 1990. The dam embankment is 169 m (554 ft) high and 1,820 m (5,970 ft) long. The hydroelectric power plant (HEPP) has a total installed power capacity of 2,400 MW generating 8,900 GWh  electricity annually.

6. Tucurui Dam (Brazil) (85,200 cubic meters)

 

The Tucuruí Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tocantins River located on the Tucuruí County in Brazil. The name “Tucuruí” was taken from a little city that existed near the construction site; there is now a city of the same name just downstream of the dam. The installed generation capacity of the plant is 8,370 MW, with 24 generating units. The Tucuruí spillway was the largest in the world with 120,000m3/s of capacity of discharge, until it was edged out in 2008 by the 120,600m3/s maximum discharge of the Three Gorges complex in China.

5. Lower Usuma (Nigeria) (93,000  cubic meters)

 

Lower Usuma is the name of a dam on the Usuma river in Nigeria. It was built in 1990 near Abuja, the new capital of Nigeria, and supplied the city with drinking water. The dam holds 93 million cubic meters of raw water, the water flow to five water plants, where the water is treated before it is passed to Abuja. The total capacity of the water is 10,000 cubic meters per hour.

4. Fort Peck, Montana (USA) (96,049 cubic meters)

 

The Fort Peck Dam is the highest of six major dams along the Missouri River, located in northeast Montana in the United States, near Glasgow, and adjacent to the community of Fort Peck. At 21,026 feet (6,409 m) in length and over 250 feet (76 m) in height, it is the largest hydraulically filled dam in the United States, and creates Fort Peck Lake, the fifth largest man-made lake in the U.S. It lies within the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge. The dam and 134-mile (216 km) long lake exist for the purposes of hydroelectric power generation, flood control, and water quality management. The dam presently has a nameplate capacity of 185,250 kilowatts, divided among 5 generating units. Three units in powerhouse number one, completed in 1951, generate a total of 105,000 kilowatts. Completed in 1961, the two remaining generating units in powerhouse number 2, have a nameplate capacity of 80,000 kilowatts.

3. Tarbela (Pakistan) (121,720 cubic meters)

 

Tarbela Dam is a large dam on the Indus River in Pakistan. It is located in Haripur District, Hazara  Division, Khyber pakhtunkhwa, about 50 kilometres (31 mi) northwest of Islamabad. The dam is 485 feet (148 m) high above the riverbed. The dam forms the Tarbela Reservoir, with a surface area of approximately 250-square-kilometre (97 sq mi). The dam was completed in 1974 and was designed to store water from the Indus River for irrigation, flood control, and the generation of hydroelectric power.

2. Samara / Zhiguli Dam (Russia) (169,000,000 cubic meters)

 

Samara Dam is a large dam and hydroelectric station on the Volga River, located near Zhigulyovsk  and Tolyatti  in Samara Oblast of Russia. It is the sixth stage of the Volga-Kama Cascade of dams, and the second of them by installed power.

1. Three Gorges (China) (39,300,000 cubic meters)

 

The Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric river dam that spans the Yangtze River in the town of Sandouping, located in the Yiling District of Yichang, in the Hubei  province, China. It is the world’s largest electricity-generating plant of any kind. The dam body was completed in 2006. Except for a ship lift, all of the originally planned components of the project were completed on October 30, 2008 when the 26th generator was brought into commercial operation. Currently, it contains 26 completed generators in the shore power plant, each with a capacity of 700 MW.

10 Famous Theme Parks In The World

10 .Ocean Park (Hong Kong)

The marine-themed amusement park covers the area of Wong Chuk Hang and Nam Long Shan, and is located in Hong Kong. The different parts of the park are connected by a gondola lift system (or cable car system), as well as the world’s second longest outdoor escalator. The theme park currently has over 14 rides and other attractions such as aquariums. Besides housing two roller coasters, Ocean Park also features a Giant panda exhibit, a jelly fish and shark aquarium, as well as a four-story aquarium displaying more than 2000 fish.

9. Cedar Point, Sandusky, Ohio (USA)

Cedar Point, the second oldest amusement park in the United States, sits at the end of a slender strip of land, at the edge of Lake Erie. Cedar Point today is a fun place to visit for the entire family. It has beautifully landscaped gardens, lake views, a museum, an ice-skating show, plenty of shops and food outlets as well as water rides, four children’s areas, a classic merry-go-round, and, of course, the roller coasters.

8. Canada’s Wonderland, Toronto, Ontario (Canada)

North of Toronto, Ontario At Canada’s Wonderland amusement park, you will find Canada’s largest and fastest roller coaster, The Behemoth. Appropriately named, the Behemoth is big. At over 5,300 feet (1,616m) in length, the Behemoth will pull you up to a height of 230 feet (70.1m) and drop you at 75 degrees through an adrenaline soaked, mind numbing 125 kph (77 Mph) per hour.

7. Port Aventura (Spain)

Port Aventura and Caribe Aquatic Park are part of a big resort complex on Costa Dorado in Spain. The resort has a wide array of roller coasters, from the Drago Khan, an intense eight-loop roller coaster, to the Stampida, two tracks wide and made of wood.

6. Europa Park (Germany)

At Europa-Park, the vision of a united continent has taken shape a long time ago. Discover the most beautiful European countries first hand. Here, Europe is not just a spot on the map, it comes alive in the hearts of the guests.

5. Blackpool Pleasure Beach (Great Britain)

This is the most popular amusement park in the United Kingdom which typically attracts several million visitors a year. The park in the seaside town of Blackpool houses four water rides and 10 roller coasters, which includes the steel Pepsi Max Big, which is the tallest roller coaster in Britain.

4. SeaWorld, San Diego, California (USA)

For a marine life exhibit and amusement park, Sea World is The place to go. Shamu entertains daily with a well made show and splashes the crowds thrilling them with upbeat Shamu music.There are a wide variety of spectacular sea animal shows including dolphin shows and the walrus stars in one also.

3. Tokyo Disneyland (Japan)

Tokyo Disneyland theme park five: Victorian-style street dynasty era of the world marketplace, adventure and legendary adventure park, west park west opening times, dreams and fairy tales of the Dream Park, the future of science and the future of the universe paradise.

2. Everland (South Korea)

This is the 10th most-visited fun park in the world and the biggest one in South Korea. Everland features a water park, five roller coasters, and five different themed areas, which are Zoo-Topia, Global Fair, European Adventure, American Adventure, and Magic Land.

1,Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida (USA)

Let’s have some fun and find things to do in Orlando Florida. More people visit Orlando than any other place in the state of Florida, for good reason, The Magic ! There are so many things to do in Orlando Florida, you’ll have your head spinning during your whole Florida vacation. Walt Disney World in Florida attracts the most visitors in the world and it’s also the largest as its set on 27,443 fun-filled acres of land.
The location features four different theme parks, which include Epcot and Magic Kingdom. There are also 24 resort hotels along with two water parks to keep yourself cool in.

10 Best Museums In The World

10. Louvre – Paris (France)
 
Louvre, located in Paris, France, is one of the world’s largest palaces. It exemplifies traditional French architecture since the Renaissance, and it houses a magnificent collection of ancient and Western art. It is one of  the most visited art museums in the world. The collection contains nearly 35,000 pieces displayed over the  structure’s 60,000 square meters (650,000 sq ft). Louvre houses some of the world's most famous works of art,  like Da Vinci's Mona Lisa; Jacques Louis David’s Oath of the Horatii; Delacroix’s Liberty Leading the People; and Alejandro of Antioch’s Venus de Milo.

9. The National Museum of Natural History – Washington D.C. (USA) 
The National Museum of Natural History is a museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located in Washington D.C. The museum’s collections total over 125 million specimens of plants, animals, fossils, minerals,  rocks, meteorites, and human cultural artifacts. It is the second most popular of all of the Smithsonian museums  and is also home to about 185 professional natural history scientist — the largest group of scientists dedicated to  the study of the natural and cultural history in the world.

8. The Palace Museum, Beijing (China) 
Located in the center of Beijing, the Palace Museum, historically and artistically one of the most comprehensive  museums in China. It was established on the basis of the Forbidden City, a palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1840), and their collection of treasures.

7. The Museo Del Prado – Madrid (Spain) 
The Prado Museum is renowned as being the largest art gallery in the world. It also exhibits sculptures, drawings,  coins and other works of arts, but it is undoubtedly its large collection of paintings which has given it fame  worldwide. It houses more than 8,600 paintings, of which they exhibit less than 2,000 because of lack of space  available. Many museums throughout the world have less artistic riches in their halls than the Prado Museum has  in storage.

6. Rijksmuseum Amsterdam (Netherlands) 
With close on one million objects, Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum is the largest museum of art and history in the Netherlands. It is perhaps best known for its collection of 17th-century Dutch masters, with twenty Rembrandts and many other highlights of the period, including works by Vermeer, Frans Hals and Jan Steen.

5. The Uffizi Gallery- Florence (Italy)
 
The Uffizi Gallery (Galleria degli Uffizi), one of the oldest and most famous art museums in the world, is housed in  the Palazzo degli Uffizi, a palazzo in Florence, Italy. The collection of works in the Uffizi Gallery cannot be  compared to any other world collection and is probably the only one to have just masterpieces of exceptional value.

4. The Vatican Museum (Vatican)

The Vatican Museums are among the greatest museums in the world. They are the public art and sculpture museums in the Vatican City which display works from the extensive collection of the Roman Catholic Church. The Sistine Chapel and the Stanze Della Segnatura decorated by Raphael are on the visitor route through the Vatican Museums. They are continuously visited by millions of every year.

3. The Hermitage St. Petersburg - Moscow (Russia)
 
Hermitage collections of works of art (over 3,000,000 items) present the development of the world culture and art  from the Stone Age to the 20th century. With the possible exception of the Louvre, there is no museum in the world that rivals the Hermitage in size and quality. Its collection is so large that it would take years to view it in its entirety. The museum is especially strong in Italian Renaissance and French Impressionist paintings, as well as possessing outstanding collections of works by Rembrandt, Picasso, and Matisse. isitors should also take advantage of its excellent Greek and Roman antiquities collection and its exhibits of Siberian and Central Asian art. Not least among the attractions of the Hermitage is the museum itself, with its fine interior decoration and architectural detail.

2. The State Tretyakov Gallery – Moscow (Russia)
 
The State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia, is the national treasury of Russian fine art and one of the greatest museums in the world. The Gallery's collection consists entirely of Russian art and artists who have made а contribution to the history of Russian art or been closely connected with it. The collection contains more than 130,000 works of painting, sculpture and graphics, created throughout the centuries by successive generations of Russian artists. Russian art works on display ranging in date from the 11th to the early 20th century.

1. Kunsthistorisches Museum – Vienna (Austria)
 
The Kunsthistorisches Museum (English: “Museum of Art History”) in Vienna, is one of the premier museums of fine arts and decorative arts in the world. The term Kunsthistorisches Museum applies to both the institution and the main building. The building is rectangular in shape, and topped with a dome that is 60 meters high. The inside of the building is lavishly decorated with marble, stucco ornamentations, gold-leaf, and paintings, making it a spectacular work of art in its own right.