Christie's auction house will sell off the glimmering collection of the late Elizabeth Taylor beginning December 13 in New York. It's expected to fetch well over $30 million. From eBay to auction houses, one thing's for sure: A celebrity can raise the value on just about anything. No, really, anything.
Dirty tissue($.02)
+
ScarlettJohansson
= $5,300(26,500,000% increase)
Toilet($550)
+
JohnLennon
= $15,000(2,627% increase)
Chest x-ray($370)
+
MarilynMonroe
= $45,000(12,062% increase)
Fender guitar($2,300)
+
EricClapton
= $959,000(43,490% increase)
33 carat ring($300,000)
+
ElizabethTaylor
= $3,000,000(expected 900% increase)
[Photos courtesy of Getty Images (tissue, Johansson, x-ray, Monroe, guitar, Clapton); iStockphoto (toilet); AP images (Lennon); Everett Collection (Taylor)]
A version of this article appears in the December 2011/January 2012 issue of Fast Company.