26 CARVED MARBLE LIONS, 1364– 66 SOLD: £9,349,000

Master sculptor André Beauneveu took two years to carve these tailentwined lions, commissioned by King Charles V of France for his future tomb. Dismantled by revolutionaries and brought to Britain in 1802 by an English aristocrat, the lions emerged at Christie’s Exceptional sale earlier this year, setting a new world record for a medieval artwork.