King Kong – $207 million

The iconic ape returned to the silver screen for the first time in nearly 30 years in this 2005 remake of the original 1933 film. The film featured Naomi Watts as Kong’s number one lady and Jack Black as the inscrupulous film director looking to bank on the prodigious primate. Universal Studios certainly turned a profit with over $500 million in gross revenue.

X-Men: The Last Stand – $210 million

The third installment of the X-Men series saw Brett Ratner stepping into the directorial shoes to replace Bryan Singer as the mutant misfits’ world is turned upside down by forces both internal and external. The film received mixed reviews, but earned higher than either of its predecessors with $459,359,555 gross revenue. It was followed in 2009 by X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest – $225 million

The sequel to Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl introduced the trilogy’s betentacled villain, Captain Davy Jones (Bill Nighy) of the Flying Dutchman. Actors Johnny Depp, Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom returned, of course, to reprise the roles that made the first movie such a hit. Dead Man’s Chest was a hit at the box office and earned over $1 billion.

Spider-Man 3 – $258 million

Director Sam Raimi’s third Spider-Man movie, featuring Tobey Macguire in the titular role and Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane Watson, boasted not one but three major villains—Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), Venom (Topher Grace) and the New Goblin (James Franco). The film grossed nearly $900 million.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End – $300 million

The final installment in Disney’s Pirates trilogy, At World’s End resolved the stories of Captain Jack Sparrow (Depp), Will Turner (Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Knightley). The most expensive movie ever made received mixed reviews, but won “Best Movie” at the People’s Choice Awards. It earned slightly less than its predecessor with a gross revenue of just under $1 billion.

James Cameron’s Avatar – $500 million

James Cameron, the director who brought us “Titanic and the Terminator franchise, may have outdone himself with his latest endeavor. He’s certainly outbudgeted himself—and everyone else in Hollywood—with Avatar.

Not to be confused with The Last Airbender, the movie follows humanity’s attempts to exploit the resources of an alien planet through hybrid human-alien “avatars.” It features a far less celebrated cast than its budget might suggest—aside from Cameron himself, the biggest names attached to it are Giovanni Ribisi and Sigourney Weaver.

Cameron first wrote the script for Avatar in 1994, but delayed production until the technology caught up with his vision. Avatar uses an innovative new motion capture camera that allows the director to watch the actor’s interaction with the computer generated world as they’re filmed, an enormous performance-capture stage called The Volume and a special skullcap for recording facial expressions. Additionally, the entire movie is being filmed in 3D.

The holidays are coming up and the UK’s Hallmark Jewelers are ringing in the season with the most expensive Christmas ornament in the world.

Adorned with 500 diamonds—three of them one carat apiece—arranged along a snowflake pattern and orbited by 188 rubies, The World’s Most Valuable Christmas Bauble, as they call it, is a truly exquisite and unique piece of holiday décor.

Work on the Bauble began on Boxing Day (December 26th, for stateside readers) 2008 and took almost a year to complete. The two halves of the interior orb were cast in London’s Hatton Garden Jewellery Quarter. The bulb was unveiled at a VIP gala and its designer, Mark Hussey, plans to display it in his Titchfield store should a buyer not be available.

The Christmas Bauble is valued at £82,000—over US $136,000.

The subtitle on the website of Robin Antar’s Antar Studios inc. proclaims her work as “Realism in Stone.” Antar’s work consists mostly of mundane objects such as denim jackets, potato chip bags, tubes of toothpaste and even M&Ms bags rendered in stone. While you can’t drink from it, Antar’s “Soda Can” is likely the most expensive soda can in the world.

The costly can is carved from a single block of marble, polished and capped with a sculpted, silver-painted lid. Antar chose to carve a slightly crushed can rather than a boring, pristine can. At 10” by 18”, it’s not the largest of Antar’s oversized works, but it’s still larger than your average soda can. It weighs in at 150 lbs.

The most expensive soda can is valued at $36,000.

Yesterday and Today was the Beatles’ twelfth US release, a collection of tracks from LPs and singles that hadn’t been released in the US. While the band didn’t appreciate the mishmash approach Capitol Records took with the album, they were able to exert some creative control over the cover—at least until it was banned. Now that cover has become the most expensive Beatles memorabilia in the world.

The original “butcher cover” features the quartet dressed as butchers, with slabs of meat and parts of plastic baby dolls strewn across their laps and shoulders. It was part of a 1966 shoot by photographer Robert Whitaker and, according to Capitol Records president Alan W. Livingston, it was Paul McCartney who insisted that it be used as the album’s cover. Unfortunately, retailer complaints led to Capital recalling the 750,000 copies of the album and pasting over the cover with a more agreeable photo.

To celebrate the remastered release of the Beatles’ back catalogue, the Saint Giles Street Gallery together with the British Beatles Fan Club put together an exhibit full of rare Beatles imagery in October 2009. Called The “Eleven Million Dollar Picture” Show, it was named after the printer’s proof of the infamous butcher cover, upon which John Lennon wrote, “here’s the famous banned butcher cover. You can sell it for $11 million dollars.”

The Saint Giles Gallery, of course, had the proof up for sale for $11 million.

The world’s most expensive piece of furniture isn’t a bed, a chair or even a couch—it’s a cabinet. Blurring the line between art and craft, the Badminton Cabinet is truly a unique item.

The Badminton Cabinet (or Badminton Chest) was commissioned by Henry Somerset, 3rd Duke of Beaufort, at the age of 19. It took thirty experts six years to create and is named after the Duke’s seat of power, Badminton House in Gloucestershire, where it sat until it was auctioned by his descendents in the late 20th century.

The ebony cabinet is over 12 feet tall and features scenes rendered in pietre dure—the arrangement of finely cut, polished and colored stones. Among the inlaid stones are a number of semiprecious stones.The clock face set at the top of the cabinet is marked with fleurs-de-lis.

The Badminton Cabinet became the most expensive piece of furniture in the world when it was auctioned for $15.1 million in 1990 and retained its status when it was auctioned again in 2004, this time for $36.7 million.

Imagine you’re sitting in your Eileen Gray “Dragons” chair, sipping a glass of Dalmore 62 Highland Malt Scotch Whisky. Where do you put your feet? Unless you somehow missed the title, you already know the answer—the world’s most expensive stool.

Sold by a jewelry store in China’s Jiangsu province, this expensive stool is made of 110 lbs of solid gold and is priced at $1.3 million.

Now, unfortunately, you know as much about it as I do.

For a different kind of stool, check out the world’s most expensive coffee.

Hey, who didn’t see that joke coming?

Tiffany lamps are a special kind of Art Nouveau lamp made with glass shades. Their history begins in 1895, when the first lamp was produced by the Tiffany Glass Company—later known as Tiffany Studios. They were not, however, designed by stained glass artist and company founder Louis Comfort Tiffany, as has been thought until recently. Clara Driscoll, head of the “Tiffany Girls,” was the mastermind behind the entirely handmade Tiffany lamps.

In 1997, one of those lamps became the most expensive lamp in the world.

The Tiffany ‘Lotus’ lamp, circa 1906, is made of bronze with leaded stained glass set in a mosaic pattern. The eight lotus flowers made of Tiffany’s patented favrile glass overlap to form the shade for this exquisite lamp.

While the world’s most expensive lamp originally sold for $750—almost $18,000 in modern currency—it was sold at a Christie’s auction in 1997 for an unprecedented $2.8 million.

Want to own the most expensive Xbox 360 in the world? Replace the boring old faceplate with this one and you’ll have it.

This unique faceplate was auctioned on eBay in 2005. Made of 999.9 ounces of solid 24k gold, the faceplate was cast with access to all the ports and receivers necessary to enjoy your Xbox to its fullest extent.

Sadly, information on whether or not it sold, and for how much, is scarce. What I can tell you, though, is that it had an opening bid of $36,000.

If you can’t find a solid gold faceplate for your Xbox 360, then why not try the next best thing—or, rather, the next most expensive thing. Featuring the popular Tomb Raider heroine, Lara Croft, this extravagant case is made with 43,000 crystals.

Only a few of these Xbox cases are being produced and sold in Germany, where it commands a price of around $11,000.

French luxury firm S. T. Dupont—no relation to the chemical company—has been dealing in extravagance since 1872, when it was founded by Simon Tissot Dupont. Recently, for instance, they created a line of accessories inspired by the 2006 James Bond film, Casino Royale. This year, they’ve produced the world’s most expensive lighter.

Part of the company’s Prestige Collection, the Ligne 2 lighter comes in four distinct varieties. While the solid gold, white gold and the “Rose” pink gold and diamond lighters are all exquisite in their own ways, the Ligne 2 Champagne is truly exceptional. Made of 18-karat white gold and decorated with 462 diamonds (5.2 carats) of GVS quality, the Ligne 2 Champagne positively glitters with excess.

The most expensive lighter in the world can be had for $79,000. Its companion piece, a pen with another 502 diamonds, commands a mere $74,000 price tag.

The world’s most expensive garbage cans are the work of contemporary pop artist Sylvie Fleury.

Created in a limited edition of twenty-five pieces, these garbage cans are made of steel pressed with gold leaf. Each one is stamped with “SF 2003” and its individual number on the underside. Number 25 was made available at Phillips de Pury & Company’s Contemporary Art Sale in New York on May 15th 2009.

Fleury’s other works include various “MINISKIRTS ARE BACK” paintings and an installation featuring a pyramid of Slim-Fast boxes.

The most expensive trash cans in the world are valued at $10,000-15,000.

So, you know, eventually someone will have to go and stick some diamonds on one.

Until then, the most expensive netbook in the world is this unique Aspire One painted in the Kyo Yuzen tradition by UFO-Hayashi, a Japanese artist known for his work on iPods, phones and other gadgets. The painting represents life in its spring, rebounding after the long and cold winter. Painting the device took the artist around three months to finish and shavings from nautilus shells were used in the process.

As for its specs, the unique netbook features the Aspire One’s typical 1.6 GHz Atom processor, 1 GB memory and a 120 GB hard drive.

The world’s most expensive netbook is up for grabs on eBay until May 1st with a starting bid of $3,000.

A chair belonging to late and great French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent has just made history as the world’s most expensive chair.

The founder of the eponymous YSL luxury brand, Saint Laurent died in June of 2008 just a few days after marrying his partner and co-founder, Pierre Bergé.

The expensive armchair had belonged to a Paris-based art dealer before finding its way into the hands of Saint Laurent and Bergé. Reportedly, that very same art dealer is the person who paid ten times the chair’s estimated value to procure it at a Christie’s auction.

The chair was made by Irish designer Eileen Gray sometime between 1917 and 1919. Called the “Dragons” chair, it is one of Gray’s masterpieces and was expected to sell for €2-3 millions.

At Paris’ Grand Palais, held February 24th, the most expensive chair in the world was sold for €21.9 million—that’s US $27.8 million!

The Chopard Blue Diamond Ring is the ring that makes any other diamond ring look bad. Set with an enormous, oval-shaped blue diamond, the expensive ring also has diamond shoulders and an 18k white gold band paved with diamonds.

Blue diamond is among the most expensive diamonds in the world. It is found among boron deposits, from whence it derives its shade. This particular gem weighs in at nine carats.

The world’s most expensive ring is valued at $16.26 million, enough to put a dent in the wallets of even the wealthiest individuals.

The Luxury Billiard is a 117-by-67-inch table with a 100-by-50-inch playing surface made of Iwan Simonis 860, the same cloth used on tables at any major billiards event. Surprisingly, the sights—a. k. a. “diamonds”—on the most expensive billiards table aren’t made with diamonds. You heard that right—someone actually managed to resist the urge to deck out an ultra-luxury item in precious gems. Instead, they’re inlayed with gold or platinum. Gold or platinum are also used in leaf-form to create the exquisite pattern on the table’s legs.

The Luxury Billiard is just as functional as it is beautiful. It features an automated drawer that can hold a set of pool cues and balls. Additionally, the triangle is built into the table so that you need only push on it—like the CD-ROM drive on a laptop—to eject it from the table.

The most expensive pool table in the world can be had for a mere $177,000. It comes in three models—Noblesse (18k gold), Majesté and Royal (platinum)—but custom configurations are available.

Bullet Forge, an online retailer of custom bullets, may be offering the most expensive bullet in the world.

The retailer sells gold bullets, platinum bullets and, of course, a whole lot of silver bullets. Their premier offering, however, is this 45 ACP hollow-point made of 14-karat white gold. Mounted within the hollow-point are ninety diamonds surrounding a sparkling amethyst. Like all of Bullet Forge’s custom bullets, this beauty is inert—it can’t be fired. However, it does feature a loop attached to the base so it can be worn on a necklace.

Bullet Forge also offers a 9mm, again made from 14-karat white gold, with only diamonds mounted in the hollow-point.

Both of these expensive bullets sell for “about $3000” although, as customs, the price varies depending on the materials used. Unfortunately, Bullet Forge isn’t currently accepting online orders—they’re too busy filling backorders and protecting their intellectual property.

Stupid lousy bullet pirates.

Starting in 2011, J. R. R. Tolkien fans across the globe will be able to see two of the world’s most expensive Tolkien books in person. GTC AG, a Swiss company, has recently acquired both books and is planning an exhibition that will bring them to the general public.

In early December, GTC AG acquired a signed copy of “The Hobbit” from Peter Harrington’s for over $78,000. Little more than two weeks later, they announced the acquisition of an even more expensive set of books—a signed first edition set of the Lord of the Rings trilogy dedicated, in Elvish no less, to Elaine Griffith, “The Queen of the Hobbits.” Griffith, a student of Tolkien’s, earned that title by convincing him to seek publication for The Hobbit.

Also acquired in that auction was a lot of Pauline Baynes’ original art. Baynes was Tolkien’s favorite illustrator and passed away last August at the age of 85.

GTC Roadshow’s 2011 exhibition, thought to be the largest collection of Tolkien material ever assembled, will coincide with the release of the upcoming live action film. The Hobbit, directed by Guillermo Del Toro (Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinth) and produced by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson, is scheduled for a December 2011 release.

The most expensive iPhone app ever sold was one aptly called “I Am Rich”—one of the first apps to be offered on iTunes. It consisted of a small icon with the subtext “I Am Rich.” Clicking on the icon would fill the screen with a large, ruby red gem on a red and black background. The purpose of this app, as stated in the product description, was to let your friends and acquaintances know that you have a whole lot of money. It also included what the developer, Armin Heinrich, called a “secret mantra” that you could use to stay rich and healthy.

The price for I Am Rich was set at $999.99 before it was pulled from the App Store.

The problem, of course, is that of the eight people who purchased I Am Rich, at least one only clicked “buy” to see what would happen. Imagine his dismay when he discovered that his wife had enabled one-click purchasing (or so he said) and he had just spent $1000 on what he’d thought was a gag.

So Apple pulled the plug on I Am Rich, ending its brief career as the world’s most expensive iPhone app.

Of course, that left room for a new most expensive app—and Lextech Labs were more than happy to fill the void. Rather than sell an app whose sole purpose was to cost a bucketload of cash, though, Lextech Labs’ iRa Pro actually does something.

Intended for security professionals who need to maintain unlimited mobility, Ira Pro allows users to monitor IP-based surveillance equipment. The app interfaces with a video management server to provide that extra sense of security that comes from knowing that you can always check in on whatever it is you’re protecting. I imagine this will be quite popular in casinos.

The most expensive iPhone app on the market sells for $899.99. Another version of iRa, iRa Direct, costs significantly less at $499.99 but only allows direct interface with the cameras rather than a video management server.

You’ve probably spent hours in frustration trying to solve a Rubik’s Cube. Maybe you’ve even solved it a few times. Maybe you’ve even figured out how to solve the thing consistently. Wouldn’t you feel smarter, though, if you solved the most expensive Rubik’s Cube in the world?

Yeah, I thought so.

The Masterpiece Cube, created by Fred Cueller of Diamond Cutters International for the 15th anniversary of the Rubik’s Cube in 1995, is a fully functioning Rubik’s Cube with one minor difference—it’s made with 185 carats of precious gems invisibly set in 18-karat gold. In its solved state, the cube features a different type of gem on each side—including 22.5 karats of amethyst, 34 karats of rubies and 34 karats of emeralds.

The world’s most expensive Rubik’s Cube is estimated to be worth $1.5 million. It isn’t currently on display, but is occasionally shown off to lucky observers.

‘Tis the season the empty your wallet—as if it wasn’t empty enough already. Despite any global economic crises or whatnot, this year marks the unveiling of yet another world’s most expensive Christmas tree.

Outdoing last year’s tree, a million-dollar Soo Kee Jewellery masterpiece displayed at the Bugis Junction shopping mall in Singapore, Ginza Tanaka’s 24k gold Christmas tree cost $1.6 million to create. The golden tree is adorned with 240 jewels—diamonds and strings of pearls included—and weighs in at 46 pounds total. That’s a far cry from last year’s 7,000-pound, 20-foot Christmas tree.

The most expensive Christmas tree in the world will be on display at the Ginza Tanaka jewelry shop in Shinsaibashi, Osaka throughout the holiday season.

Broadway theatre has its roots in the very end of the 18th century, when New York’s first theatre companies were formed. Nowadays, Broadway audiences can expect to see a mixture of well known television and movie stars and stage actors who only play bit parts outside of theatre. Considering the salaries commanded by film actors, let alone costumes and sets, it’s little wonder that Broadway productions can become quite expensive.

The most expensive Broadway production in history will be “Spider-Man: The Musical,” directed by Julie Taymor. Taymor is no stranger to Broadway, having directed “The Lion King,” based on the Disney film of the same name, in 1997. Feature films under her belt include Shakespearian gore fest Titus (1999) and, most recently, Across the Universe (2007).

Taymor isn’t the only big name attached to this production, though. Scoring the musical will be U2’s Bono and The Edge.

The most expensive Broadway musical in history is expected to cost around $40 million to produce. It’s expected to open next year and, according to the New York Post, will have to run “about 8,000 years” in order to break even.

If you’re the kind of guy who manages to cut himself with a safety razor, the world’s most expensive razor is not for you. If you have steady hands, an appreciation of fine craftsmanship and the kind of budget that lets you buy a $30,000 razor, though, then you may want to take a look at what Hommage has created for people like you.

Known for their luxury personal grooming products, Parisian company Hommage certainly lives up to their reputation with the Damascene Razor. The name comes from the Damascus steel used to make the blade. While the technique for making the True Damascus encountered during the Crusades has been lost since the 1700s, modern pattern welding techniques have produced similar blades. The 128 layers of steel in the Damascene Razor produce a rose and torsion pattern much like those seen in True Damascus blades.

The blade isn’t the only expensive material used to make this extravagantly crafted straight razor, though. The razor’s sheath is platinum plated and it comes in a lacquered gift box of Tanzanian anigré wood.

If you want one, though, you’d better buy it now. The most expensive razor in the world is a limited edition item.

In 1966, a twenty-something named Buster Warenski decided that he’d like to make his own knife. Forty years later, he is considered one of the greatest knife makers of the last century. At the age of thirty, he became one of the handful of knife makers to join the Knifemakers Guild. He ended up serving two terms as the guild’s president.

His Legacy Series of four 18k gold knives includes the most expensive modern knife in the world—Gem of the Orient. Designed for a Japanese customer, the knife’s jade and gold filigree handle is encrusted with 153 emeralds (10 carats) and nine diamonds (5 carats). In all, the knife was made with 28 ounces of gold. Supposedly, it took Warenski 10 years to make.

The world’s most expensive modern knife was originally sold for $1.2 million. The buyer, in turn, put Gem of the Orient up for sale for $2.1 million.

Does your purse-ridden poodle get hives just looking at a standard doghouse? If so, then he may be in luck as the world’s most expensive doghouse will appeal to even the princeliest pup’s sensibilities.

This unique doghouse, featuring the face of Japan’s famous feline, was created by Sanrio for a sales event at a department store in Tokyo. It’s decorated with 7,600 Swarovski crystal beads and is large enough for a Chihuahua or terrier. This miniature canine palace was created with the luxury couches made for larger dogs in mind.

The one-of-a-kind Hello Kitty doghouse sold for a mere $31,660. That’s a steal for the most expensive doghouse in the world!

Related Information

• Most Popular Dog Breeds
• Most Popular Dog Names

These sparkling Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head sets were created and signed by Jay Strongwater. Available in only a limited number, these expensive toys were hand-jeweled with over 50,000 Swarovski crystals in seventeen different colors. That includes everything from the potato body to the plastic ears.

The world’s most expensive Mr. Potato Head was featured in the Neiman Marcus catalogue in 2004 and sold for $8,000 apiece.

Vacherin Constantin’s Tour de l’Ile – $1.5 million
Swiss watchmaker Vacheron Constantin marked its 250th anniversary in 2005 with the world’s most complicated wrist watch—the Tour de l’Ile. The watch is so complicated that it required over 10,000 hours of research to create. Its name refers to one of the historical sites of the venerable company, located next to the current Maison Vacheron Constantin on the Quai de l’Ile.

Only produced in a limited edition of seven pieces, this expensive watch is also the most complicated double-face watch. Tour de l’Ile is made with a totally original combination of horological complications (that is, features beyond the simple telling of the time of day) and astronomical indications composing a list of sixteen different points including a minute repeater, sunset time, perpetual calendar, second time zone, a tourbillion device, the equation of time and a representation of the night sky.

At $1.5 million, this is one of the world’s most expensive watch produced in recent years.

Patek Philippe’s Platinum World Time – over $4 million

The Platinum World Time created by Patek Philippe was sold at auction for over $4 million USD in 2002. It is believed that only one was created and, at the time, it was the most expensive wristwatch in the world.

In fact, Patek Philippe had produced all of the ten most expensive watches in the world. The company, headquartered in Geneva, made their first wristwatch in 1868. They had already made a name for themselves prior to that, however, by providing watches to Queen Victoria herself in 1851. Other notable customers include Pope Pius IX, a king and queen of Denmark, an Italian king and Saddam Hussein’s son-in-law.

Patek Phillipe’s Supercomplication- $11 million

Patek Philippe’s most expensive watch was a yellow-gold pocket watch created in 1932 for New York banker Henry Graves, Jr. The watch, Supercomplication, was created as part of a vain competition Graves had with Ohio automobile engineer James Ward Packard to have commissioned a watch with the most complications in the world. This watch, of course, guaranteed that Graves won the contest. Supercomplication wasn’t surpassed until over fifty years later, when Patek Philippe created the 18k gold Caliber 89 which had a total of thirty-three different functions.

Graves’ watch became the most expensive watch in the world when it was sold at auction in 1999 for over $11 million USD. Caliber 89 went for a mere $6 million.

Chopard’s $25 million watch

Yes, you read that right: twenty-five million dollars. This gaudy timepiece by Chopard is adorned with three heart-shaped diamonds—a 15-carat pink diamond, a 12-carat blue diamond and an 11-carat white diamond. For good measure, they threw in 163 carats of white and yellow diamonds to bring the total to 201 carats of diamonds. The result is something that looks rather like a geode that’s been turned inside out and dipped in lemon Kool-Aid. Add to that the fact that the size of the watch’s face must make telling time into a fun game of Where’s Waldo and you’ll see that Chopard has truly created a recipe for success.

Of course, its $25 million price tag guarantees its place as the world’s most expensive watch for years to come.

A pair of Moss Lipow sunglasses

New York artist Moss Lipow may not have been trained in the design of eyewear, but that hasn’t stopped him from producing a variety of uniquely eccentric sunglasses. One of those designs, framed in ostrich and alligator leather and priced at $3,800, has become one of the most expensive pairs of sunglasses in the world. Lipow, a former student of NYU’s film school, has a broad visual arts background and can reasonably claim to have the largest collection of vintage 20th century eyewear in the world; his collection includes over 3,000 different frames. For the most part, his inspiration comes from early rock n’ rollers and that preference can easily be seen in his favorite piece from his collection—a pair of Buddy Holly style frames from the 50s that he used to wear regularly.

Dolce and Gabanna’s elite sunglasses

Completely blowing those pricey frames out of the water, Dolce and Gabanna recently released a pair of sunglasses whose price easily overshadowed that of Lipow’s $3,800 shades. The brown-tinted shades are framed in gold and appear to have the brand’s logo written on the arms—in diamonds.

If you find yourself in the market for the world’s most expensive sunglasses, there are two things you should keep in mind. First, the Dolce and Gabanna product number is DG2027B. Second, you’re going to be spending $383,609 on your luxury eyewear.

It’s being claimed by some that Pixar’s latest offering, Wall-E, is the most expensive silent film ever made. While it’s true that the film’s staggering $180 million budget places it within the top 20 most expensive films of all time, the film is not technically a silent film.

The story of the last—and loneliest—robot on earth, Wall-E is inspired by Charlie Chaplin, probably the most famous silent comedy actor of all time. His signature character, the Tramp, was featured in many of the films that he wrote, produced, directed and acted for. The Tramp’s final film, Modern Times, is one of the most expensive silent films ever made with its $1.5 million budget.

While Wall-E has only a few speaking parts, even Wall-E’s beeps and clicks would be enough to disqualify it from being considered a silent film. Silent films had no synchronized audio track, a lack for which cinemas compensated by hiring live musicians from lone pianists to entire orchestras.

So what is the absolute most expensive silent film ever made?

Nineteen twenty-five saw the release of Ben-Hur. While you may be more familiar with the 1959 remake, the original film was quite silent. The story of the titular Jew separated from his family by childhood friend and Roman Centurion, Messala, Ben-Hur features a legendary chariot race and at least two appearances by Jesus Christ.

The chariot race in particular is memorable because producer Louis B. Meyer, disappointed with the cautiousness of the actors, offered a $100 prize to the winner in order to get a more action packed sequence. This resulted in a spectacular crash, killing five horses, which made its way into the final cut of the film. Several other horses and even one stuntman were also killed during the filming of the race sequence.

While the exact figure is lost in cinema history, it is thought that the most expensive silent film cost between 4 and 6 million dollars.

If you’re wondering how a cover by a nobody band could be worth so much, perhaps it’d help to know that three of the band’s members went on to form three quarters of the legendary pop rock group, The Beatles. Paul McCartney, John Lennon and George Harrison are all featured on the most expensive record, along with fellow Quarrymen Colin Hanton and John “Duff” Lowe.

Most members of the band attended Quarry Banks grammar school, from which they derived the name. The band lasted until 1958, when Lowe and Hanton left the group. After that, the group went through several names before settling on The Beatles.

Sir Paul McCartney still owns the world’s most expensive record. Record Collector, a magazine, arrived at the £100,000 figure through information from experts, collectors and dealers.

The expensive single also contains an original B-side by McCartney and Harrison, “In Spite of All the Danger.”

The original surfboards were a Hawaiian invention made from local wood. Not only were these boards over 15 feet long, but they were quite heavy as well. Nowadays, surfboards are usually made from polyurethane foam covered in a few layers of fiberglass cloth and then coated with polyester resin.

The world’s most expensive surfboard is a little different.

Created by Australian designed Marc Newson, the most expensive surfboard is one of ten such boards created as pieces of art. That doesn’t mean that they’re just there to look pretty, though. The 5 foot boards were plated in nickel and polished to a mirror finish to reduce drag. Newson originally sold them for $100,000 apiece.

One of these boards was used by championship surfer Garrett McNamara. Unfortunately, McNamara wiped out, lost the board and discovered it the next day in the hands of someone 15 miles down the beach. That board is now on display at the Gagosian Gallery in New York.

Dick brewer’s “Surfboards Hawaiian”
(via Extremehorizon)

Newson designed them with the help of Dick Brewer, a legend in the field who has previous experience in designing a most expensive surfboard. One of his “Surfboards Hawaii” elephant gun boards, created in the 60s, was sold for $30,000 at auction in 2007. Only two others are known to exist.

While there are nine other of Newson’s nickel-plated surfboards, one sold at a Sotheby’s auction in NYC still commanded a far greater price than anyone expected when it was sold for a record-breaking $220,000. Now that’s an expensive way to hang ten!

You probably know that the advent of the web has caused a steady decline in newspaper circulation. Eventually, printed broadsheets may become a thing of the past entirely, relegated to museums and rare book libraries. In that case, certain newspaper copies may command exceedingly high prices for their historical value.

For now, though, it’s the stamps that matter.

The world’s most expensive newspapers is an issue of the Romanian newspaper, Zimbrulu and Vulturulu (The Aurochs and the Eagle), that was mailed to Galati when it was published in 1858. Because of its weight, the newspaper required no less than eight Cap de Bour (Bull Head) stamps. These stamps are now quite rare, quite expensive and quite coveted by philatelists (i.e. stamp collectors).

The priceless paper found its way into the hands of the David Feldman auction house. From there it was auctioned to art collector Joseph Hackmey for €829,500—over $1.3 million in the US! That makes it not only the most expensive newspaper in the world but also one of the most expensive philatelic objects in the world.