The 65 works in the Macklowe Collection represent “an unrivalled ensemble that charts the high points of Western artistic achievement of the last 80 years”, Sotheby’s said.

“There can be no doubt that this sale will captivate top collectors from around the world and that it will make history as a defining moment in the art market,” said Charles Stewart, Sotheby’s chief executive officer, during a live-streamed press conference.

The announcement is a welcome piece of revitalising news for the international art market as it rebounds from the pandemic, which drove down sales and caused layoffs at galleries and dealerships.

Sales plummeted in value by 22% in the art market last year, according to a report by Art Basel and UBS.

Sotheby’s said it would offer the Macklowe Collection at two sales in New York, one on Nov 15 and the second in May.

The first auction will feature iconic works such as Warhol’s silkscreen portraits of Marilyn Monroe, an enormous tritone painting by Mark Rothko, and a seascape by Gerhard Richter.

Other distinctive pieces that will be sold in November include Alberto Giacometti’s “Le Nez” sculpture of a long-nosed figure in a cage; a painting from Cy Twombly’s “A Scattering of Blossoms” series; and a Picasso sculpture dedicated to his friend, the French poet Guillaume Apollinaire.