Nobel Peace Center says Nobel medal can change hands, laureate title can’t; see past cases

A medal can change owners, but the title of a Nobel Peace Prize laureate cannot, the Nobel Peace Center had said, effectively establishing that US President Donald Trump will not be considered a Nobel laureate.

Trump on Thursday, January 15, received the medal from Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado who was named a Nobel laureate last month for "her tireless work promoting democratic rights". The two had met for the first time for a lunch meeting that reportedly lasted over an hour.

Machado said she presented her medal to Trump to recognise his commitment to the freedom of the Venezuelan people. Trump had been arguing for much of 2025 that he should win the prize, claiming he had resolved major conflicts across the world and preventing wars.

While Machado passing along the medal to Trump appears to be the first time where a laureate attempts to pass the recognition or honour that comes with the award, Nobel Peace Prize medals have changed owners through various means including auctions in the award's 125-year-long history.

Here's look at the times gold medal that has been away in the past:

1) Dmitry Muratov | Nobel Peace Prize, 2021

A well‑known case, the Nobel Peace Center highlighted, is Russian journalists Dmitry Muratov’s medal, which was auctioned for over $100 million to support refugees from the war in Ukraine. He was awarded the prize in 2021 for his "efforts to safeguard freedom of expression" and shared with Filipino journalist Maria Ressa. It was auctioned a year later in 2022.

2) James Watson | Nobel Prize in Medicine, 1962

American molecular biologist and geneticist James Watson, who co-discovered the DNA double helix, sold his Nobel Prize medal at auction in 2014 for $4.1 million. However, the unnamed buyer later returned the medal to Watson.

3) Sir William Lawrence Bragg | Nobel Prize in Physics, 1915

The sale of Sir William Bragg’s Nobel medal was a relatively low-profile event, done later in his life due to financial constraints in 1936. While the exact buyer and sale amount were never publicly disclosed, the medal ultimately ended up with the Royal Institution in London, where it is now preserved.

4) Ragnar Granit | Nobel Prize in Medicine, 1967

Neurophysiologist Ragnar Granit’s Nobel medal was sold in March 2004 after it was recovered from theft in damaged condition. Details of the buyer and final sale price were not made public but the transaction was acknowledged by Nobel-linked institutions as legitimate.