The sale of a lost Leonardo da Vinci painting smashed auction records, but it wasn't the only purchase this year that made headlines around the globe in 2017. From Paul Newman's watch to a piece of very special Star Wars history, we take a look at this year's record-breaking sales.

Starting the year off right, a super-rare 1963 E-Type Jaguar came up for auction in January at a Bonhams sale in Scottsdale, Arizona and sold for $7.3 million (£5.6m), making it the world's most expensive E-Type, and then some.

Setting a record for the highest price ever paid for a calf at auction in Australia, a prized Holstein heifer, which was bred by Lighted Genetics, went under the hammer at an auction in Tatura, Victoria in January and realised a hefty $193,000 (£147k).

Sotheby's London held the world's most lucrative auction of erotic art in February, which ended up grossing a record $7 million (£5.3m). Unsurprisingly, the NSFW auction catalogue almost crashed the Sotheby's website after attracting a record-breaking 1 million views. This antique silver bowl is one of the tamer pieces from the sale.

Later that month, Christie's in London sold René Magritte's 'La Corde Sensible' (1960) for $18.9 million (£14.5m), a new record for the Surrealist artist. The auction house's Art of the Surreal sale also featured Magritte's Le Domaine d’Arnheim (1938), which fetched $12.5m (£9.5m).

On March 1, a 1905 painting of flowers in a garden by Gustav Klimt entitled 'Bauerngarten (Blumengarten)' went for $63 million (£48m) at a Sotheby's auction in London. Surpassing all expectations, the sale smashed the record for any work by the Austrian artist.

Obliterating the record for the most valuable collection of American coins ever sold, the D. Brent Pogue collection grossed a not too shabby $106.7 million (£81.3m). The collection, which includes this rare 1804 silver dollar sold for $3 million (£2.3m), was auctioned off at Stack's Bowers Galleries in Santa Ana, California.

The Abbey Road console used to record Pink Floyd's classic The Dark Side of the Moon album in the early 1970s sold for a sensational $1.8 million (£1.4m) at a Bonhams auction in New York in March, breaking several records, including the highest price achieved for a piece of audio tech.

One of this year's most standout sales, the breathtaking Pink Star Diamond brought the auction house down in April when it sold for a record $71.2 million (£55m) at Sotheby's Hong Kong. The 59.60-carat rock, which was acquired by jeweller Chow Tai Fook, is the most expensive gem ever sold at auction.

This exquisite late-16th to early-17th century Ottoman panel in sumptuous silk and metal thread fetched an impressive $1.4 million (£1.1m) at a Sotheby's London auction on April 28. The realised price is a new record for an antique Ottoman textile.

In May, this untitled 1982 picture of a skull by Neo-Expressionist graffiti artist Jean-Michel Basquiat went under the hammer at Sotheby's New York and was snapped up by Japanese Internet entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa for $110.5 million (£84.2m), making it the most expensive painting by an American artist ever sold at auction, and 2017's priciest lot.

The most expensive earrings ever sold at auction, this mismatched pair of fancy coloured diamond earrings dubbed Apollo and Artemis realised an eye-watering $57.4 million (£43.7m) at a Sotheby's Geneva sale in mid-May.

Another record was broken in May, when this bronze sculpture, which was cast in 1913 by Constantin Brancusi, went under the hammer for $57.4 million (£43.7m) at a Christie's auction in London, the highest price ever realised for a work by the artist.

The record for the most expensive handbag ever sold at auction was smashed in May at Christie's Hong Kong when this blingy Hermès Birkin Himalaya handbag sold for $379,261 (£289k). Crafted from crocodile skin, the ultra-premium bag is encrusted with 205 diamonds and features 18-carat gold buckles.

Worn by Michael Jordan at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, this battered pair of sneakers fetched $190,373 (£145k) at an SCP auction in Arizona back in June, a world record for athlete-worn footwear.

The record price realised for a Kandinsky artwork at auction was broken twice in one night in June when the Russian artist's 1903 painting 'Landscape with Green House' sold for $27.7 million (£21m) at Sotheby's London, swiftly followed by 'Painting with White Lines' from 1913, which fetched $43 million (£33m).

Also in June, the famed 18.04-carat Rockefeller Emerald was auctioned by Christie's New York, realising a record-shattering $5.5 million (£4.2m). This makes the emerald, which was bought by jeweller Harry Winston, the most expensive ever in terms of price per carat.

Yet another artist record was broken in June, Max Beckmann's powerful 1938 painting 'Bird's Hell', which depicts the horrors of pre-World War II Germany, sold for $42 million (£32m) at a Christie's auction in London, the highest price realised for a work by the artist.

The Holy Grail for Star Wars fans, the real-deal R2-D2 prop used in the original film trilogy netted a cool $2.8 million (£2.1m) at a Profiles in History sale in California in June, the highest price ever achieved for a movie prop at auction.

At the beginning of July, a collection of rare Disney animation art from a variety of classic, much-loved movies came up for auction in Dallas. The Heritage sale, which included this artwork from Fantasia by Kay Nielsen, grossed $1.4 million (£1.1m), a record for an animation art sale.

A new world record for a Chinese antique art piece, this highly prized 1,000-year-old bronze plate went for an astronomical $27.3 million (£20.8k) at a Xiling Yinshe auction in Hangzhou, eastern China on July 15.

In August, two car sales were the highlights of the month. In the first sale, a Bonhams auction in Carmel, California, this rare 1995 McLaren F1 sold for $15.6 million (£11.8m), a record price for a McLaren hypercar.

Hot on its heels, this rare 1956 Aston Martin DBR1 fetched a jaw-dropping $22.5 million (£17.1m) at a Sotheby's auction in Monterey, California, making it the most expensive Aston Martin and the priciest ever British-made car sold at auction.

In September, the record auction price for a brand new car was shattered by this Ferrari La Ferrari Aperta. The stunning hypercar, which hasn't even been built yet, sold for $9.6 million (£7.3m) at a charity auction in Italy.

Later in September, Audrey Hepburn's actual Breakfast at Tiffany's script, complete with the actress's handwritten notes, fetched $834,000 (£632k) at a Christie's sale in London, a record-breaking sum for a film script sold at auction.

In October, the record price realised at auction for a Chinese antique art piece, which was set by the bronze plate in July, was smashed when this incredibly rare but rather plain-looking 1,000-year-old porcelain bowl sold for $37.7 million (£28.6m) at a Sotheby's auction in Hong Kong.

Paul Newman's stainless steel Rolex shattered the world record for a wristwatch sold at auction when it fetched $17.8 million (£13.6m) at Phillips in New York in October. The watch had been bought for Newman by his wife Joanne Woodward from a Tiffany & Co store in New York in 1968. She had it inscribed with the words 'Drive carefully', as the actor was embarking on a motor racing career at the time. He gave it to his daughter's boyfriend in 1984.

A 500-year-old painting entitled Salvator Mundi (Saviour of the World) smashed the world record for a piece of art sold at auction when it went for $450 million (£341m) at Christie's in New York. Some experts have questioned its authenticity but that didn't deter a bidding war for the work, which was originally thought to have been painted by one of da Vinci's followers.