The painting had not been publicly exhibited since 1977 and was sold at auction at Christie's.

The Sunday Afternoon painting is expected to fetch between £4m and £6m at auction, Christie's says.

The listing, which includes the artist's iconic costumes, platform boots and luxury car, could bring over $10m.

The 17.61 carat, pear-shaped "Blue Royal" diamond, set in a ring, fetched $43.8 million, reports said

Christie's auction house says the seller has decided to loan it to a museum instead.

The record-breaking sum is the highest ever paid for either an American or 20th Century work of art.

The painting gained fame when its owner challenged the Louvre to prove it had the true Mona Lisa.

Christie's predicts the bottle of Pétrus 2000 that orbited the earth could sell for $1m (£720,000).