The most expensive World War II item we can verify at auction is a Spitfire Mk I that sold for £3.1 million (about $4.7 million) at Christie’s in London in July 2015. The newest records are code machines: an Enigma M4 sold for €482,600 in Paris in November 2025, and a three-rotor Enigma set a model record at $499,475 in December 2025. The list below ranks ten verified sales of aircraft, vehicles, ciphers and medals. We left out personal belongings of wartime political leaders, which is a change from earlier versions of this page, and we only rank prices we could tie to a sale.
| Rank | Item | Price (USD, approx.) | Date | Sold at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spitfire Mk I P9374 | $4.7 million (£3.1m) | July 2015 | Christie’s London |
| 2 | Spitfire TR9 two-seater | $2,527,784 | April 2009 | Bonhams, Hendon |
| 3 | Spitfire (1945, New Zealand) | about $2.1 million | date not confirmed | Bonhams and Goodman |
| 4 | Sd.Kfz 251/9 half-track | $564,000 | year not confirmed | Milestone Auctions |
| 5 | Enigma M4 used by Karl Dönitz | about $557,000 (€482,600, our conversion) | Nov 2025 | Christie’s Paris |
| 6 | Enigma machine | $547,500 (reported) | 2017 | Auction |
| 7 | Victoria Cross of Pvt Edward Kenna | about $540,000 (£335,000, our conversion) | 2011 | Spink |
| 8 | Three-rotor Enigma | $499,475 | Dec 2025 | Rock Island Auction Company |
| 9 | Enigma I, fully operational | $214,079 | date not confirmed | RR Auction |
| 10 | Enigma machine | about $210,000 (£133,250, our conversion) | 2011 | Christie’s |
1. Spitfire Mk I P9374: £3.1 million
This Spitfire was shot down over the sea during the war and later recovered. It sold at Christie’s Exceptional Sale in London on 9 July 2015, beating an estimate of £2.5 million by 24 percent, to a private European collector. The proceeds went to charity. The previous Spitfire record was reportedly about £1.7 million. The figure is the reported result with premium.
2. The two-seat Spitfire TR9: $2,527,784
Bonhams sold this airworthy Mk IX trainer on 20 April 2009 at the RAF Museum in Hendon. It was built in 1944, spent time with the South African Air Force, ended up in a Cape Town scrapyard and returned after about five years of restoration. The buyer was a British financier and polar adventurer.
3. A 1945 Spitfire in New Zealand: about $2.1 million
A 1945 Supermarine Spitfire sold for more than NZ$3 million (about US$2.1 million) at a Bonhams and Goodman sale in Nelson, a record for any aircraft or motor vehicle sold by auction in Australia or New Zealand. One report puts it at £1.22 million. We could not pin down the year, so treat the date as unconfirmed.
4. A German half-track: $564,000
The top lot at one of Milestone Auctions’ fall sales was a 1944 Sd.Kfz 251/9 armored personnel carrier originally built by Auto Union. The year of the sale is not confirmed in our source.
5. Dönitz’s Enigma M4: €482,600
Christie’s Paris sold a naval Enigma M4 used by Admiral Karl Dönitz to an unidentified buyer in November 2025. The M4 was the four-rotor version used by the German navy for U-boat traffic. We convert the euros at roughly 1.15, our estimate.
6. An Enigma at $547,500
Auction prices for Enigma machines have ranged from about $40,000 to $547,500, the high being a 2017 result. We could not find the house or details for that lot, so it is ranked on the reported figure alone.
7. The Victoria Cross of Private Edward Kenna: £335,000
His medal sold at Spink in 2011 for £335,000, which we convert at about $540,000. The Victoria Cross has been valued at over £400,000 at auction in other sales, but we found no sale of a World War II VC above Kenna’s.
8. A three-rotor Enigma: $499,475
Rock Island Auction Company sold this machine in December 2025 for $499,475, which it described as a world record for a three-rotor model.
9. A working Enigma I: $214,079
An RR Auction sale had an operational Enigma I machine as its top lot at $214,079. We could not confirm the date.
10. An Enigma at Christie’s: about $210,000
In 2011 Christie’s sold an Enigma for £133,250. The price tells you how far the machines have moved in 14 years: the same kind of lot now starts near the middle of the top ten.
Records set in 2025 and 2026
- December 2025: a three-rotor Enigma made $499,475 at Rock Island, a model record.
- November 2025: the Dönitz Enigma M4 made €482,600 at Christie’s Paris.
We found no WWII aircraft or vehicle auction in 2025 or 2026 that beat the 2015 Spitfire.
What drives these prices
- Aircraft sit in a class of their own. Three Spitfires fill the top three places.
- Code machines are the fastest riser. Enigmas went from £133,250 in 2011 to close to half a million dollars in 2025.
- Documented use beats condition. The Dönitz machine and the recovered Spitfire sold on their histories.
- Medals are a thin market. Few WWII Victoria Crosses ever reach auction, so any sale is an event.
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What is the most expensive WWII item ever sold at auction?
The Mk I Spitfire P9374, which fetched £3.1 million (about $4.7 million) at Christie’s in 2015, is the highest we could verify.
How much is an Enigma machine worth?
Prices have ranged from about $40,000 to around $550,000, with recent records near half a million dollars.
What was the latest record?
A three-rotor Enigma sold at $499,475 at Rock Island in December 2025.
How much is a Victoria Cross worth?
Some have been valued at over £400,000, and Private Edward Kenna’s World War II medal sold for £335,000 in 2011.
Why are Spitfires so expensive?
Few survive, restoring one costs millions, and each has a documented history, so serious buyers compete.
Why did you leave out items from wartime leaders?
We chose to rank only aircraft, vehicles, cipher machines and medals, where we can state the facts neutrally.
How we put this list together
We ranked items by verified auction results, converting from pounds and euros at approximate rates and labelling our own conversions. Prices are approximate and change over time.
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Last updated: October 2026.
