Rothschild Tabriz Medallion Carpet

We knew we couldn't write about pricey carpets without discussing the infamous art theft perpetrated by the Nazis during WWII. This superbly made Persian rug from North West Persia was "looted by the Nazis from the Austrian branch of the Rothschild family during the Second World War," according to The Guardian. They took this 17th-century carpet from the Austrian Rothschild family. The Austrian government ultimately restored it to the family in 1999.

The Rothschild Tabriz Medallion Carpet, which is over 20 feet in length, was valued at $400,000 but was purchased for $2.4 million by Sheikh al-Thani of Qatar. It became one of the most expensive carpets ever sold in the world.

The 2008 Rothschild family auction was estimated to bring in $40 million, with items including an engraved prayer book, an authentic Louis XVI commode, and many Franz Hals and Old Master pictures. The sale raised $89.9 million, breaking ten auction records: five for Old Masters and one apiece for an illuminated manuscript, an Italian manuscript, furniture, a clock, and a carpet. The Rothschild Tabriz Medallion Carpet is on display in Qatar's Museum of Islamic Art.

Cost: $2.4 million