Name: The Dead (oriental gold, turquoise)
Brand: Damien Hirst
Rating: 5 (233 reviews)

Track auction value trend

The value of Damien Hirst’s The Dead (oriental gold, turquoise) (signed) is estimated to be worth between £4,250 and £6,500. This foil block artwork, created in 2009, has shown consistent value growth, with an average annual growth rate of 8%. This work has an auction history of four total sales since its entry to the market on 26th June 2018. In the last 12 months, the average selling price was £4,250, across two sales. Over the past five years, the hammer price has remained steady, with the most recent sale occurring on 19th March 2025. The edition size of this artwork is limited to 15.

Auction Date

Auction House

Location

Hammer Price

Return to Seller

Buyer Paid

March 2025

Forum Auctions London

United Kingdom

June 2018

Bonhams New Bond Street

United Kingdom

Meaning & Analysis

The Dead (oriental gold, turquoise) is a signed foil block print in colours on Arches paper produced by renowned contemporary artist, Damien Hirst. In this print, Hirst renders a floating skull in oriental gold with splashes of bright turquoise. The bright colours of the skull contrast with the composition’s white backdrop.

The print, made in 2009, is one of thirty-one prints that form The Dead series. In this series, Hirst produces colourful skulls in order to explore the theme of death in a frank yet light-hearted way. Hirst explains, “you can frighten people with death or an idea of their own mortality, or it can actually give them vigour.” The bold use of colour throughout the series, and evidenced in The Dead (oriental gold, turquoise), reflects how Hirst wants to invigorate the viewer and encourage them to confront their own mortality.

Death has been a subject that has long fascinated Hirst. The artist rose to fame with his impressive yet provocative installation, The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living which was unveiled at the Saatchi Gallery’s ‘Young British Artists’ exhibition in 1991. The installation of a 14-foot long tiger shark in a tank of formaldehyde offered a confrontational and sardonic approach to the theme of death and mortality. Hirst has continued to represent death in his artworks, through the use of skulls, dead insects and medicine.