USA-based Art Collective Kanbas made the largest non-spurious token (NFT) purchase in three years last week, getting a 1-of-1 artwork by Sam Spratt for $ 3 million.

The artwork is called “X.Masquerade” and is the sixth chapter in “The History of Luci.” It binds into an upcoming invitation event that allows supporters to participate in a game by buying a “mask of Luci” for 2.56 ETH ($ 6,800).

“We are proud to stand next to him [Sam Spratt] And help share masquerade with the world. It is our way of honoring Sam’s trust, the monumental work he has created, and – over all – the shared values ​​that support it, “Kanbus posted on x

The purchase comes along with a timely boost to the NFT sector after a marketing pressure from NFT platform OpenSea, which includes a token -airdrop. Trading volume hit $ 40 million over the last 24 hours, an increase of 29% the previous day according to CoingeCKO.

However, the NFT market as a whole has failed to repeat the staggering heights of previous cycles; The activity is down, and the general atmosphere also decreases as floor prices for joints such as cryptopunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club and is down with 71% and 91% respectively.

Much of the market’s situation is linked to this cycle’s increase of $ 73 billion in Memecoins, which retail investors appear to be preferable due to minimal transaction fees, more liquidity and a lower barrier to entry.

But maybe Kanbas’ purchase of $ 3 million can be a maturation of the NFT market away from speculative profile picture (PFP) collections and against real art whose value lies in worship of a few as opposed to many attention.

The rapid growth of NFTs in 2022 was addictive; It caught millions of participants and got billions of dollars in weekly volume, but the market itself was unsustainable. When underlying assets used to buy digital art began to tumble, NFT collectors tried to cut back on losses by undermining other sellers – creating a liquidity scand and possibly cascade.

All speculative bubbles are popping at one point, most of the ICO tokens 2017 is no longer operational, but those still found are worth billions. For NFTs, it now seems less about the monetary value and ‘get rich fast’ aspect and more about the cultural and creative value of the art itself.