15 Most Expensive Bonsai Trees in the World [Updated 2023]

Did you know that the most expensive bonsai is worth “$2 million USD”? Insane, right?

In this article, I’ll take you on a tour of 15 most expensive bonsai trees in the world and their details. Keep reading.

Top 15 Most Expensive Bonsai Trees In The World

Bonsai tree for sale: If you’re looking for bonsai trees for sale, there are many options available. You can find them online or in physical stores. You should look for a reputable supplier who offers a wide variety of trees. You should also read the product descriptions carefully to ensure that you are getting the right tree for your needs.

1. Kato Family’s Old Juniper, Japan: $2 million

This 1000 year old Juniper Bonsai is known to be one of the world’s oldest and rarest Bonsai.  It can be found in the Mansei-en Bonsai nursery in Japan. It is owned by the Kato Family. 

This Bonsai Tree is claimed to have been discovered in a Japanese forest. Then it was handed down to the Kato Family, who owns the Mansei-en Bonsai nursery. The family has been caring for it since the beginning. This Bonsai has been alive for over a century. 

Juniper Bonsai is the most costly bonsai tree in the world, according to research. A 250-year-old Juniper Bonsai sold for $2 million in 1981. Is the pricing too good to be true?

2. Oldest Pine Bonsai Takamatsu, Japan: $ 1.2 Million

When you hear that it is the world’s largest tree, the first image that springs to mind is of a massive tree. The newborn bonsai tree, on the other hand, has earned this reputation. This tree doesn’t even have the length of a normal tree’s twig. The most expensive tree in the world is currently the oldest pine bonsai tree in Japan, which was purchased for $1.2 million at the International Bonsai Convention in Takamatsu, Japan.

Pine trees are among the most popular bonsai trees in the world, yet they are mostly liked by bonsai enthusiasts because they are not a good beginner option. Pine bonsai can be fashioned into practically every known bonsai style since pines come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors.

3. Yamaki Pine, USA: $1 Million

The Yamaki Pine has become one of the most well-known bonsai trees in the world since its true history was unearthed in 2001. Masaru Yamaki sent the bonsai tree to the United States as part of a 53-specimen gift for the country’s bicentennial in 1976, and it is a survivor of the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, during World War II. 

The National Arboretum was ignorant of the tree’s history until two of Yamaki’s grandsons came to check on it in 2001. 

Yamaki’s grandchildren provided the museum with information about the tree, including news video shot at the Yamaki Nursery following the explosion, which showed the tree standing tall in the background.

As the 70th anniversary of the Hiroshima explosion approached in 2015, the National Arboretum paid tribute to the tree’s history.

4. Japanese Black Pine, Japan: $1 Million

There’s a Japanese Black Pine Bonsai at Shunkaen Bonsai Museum worth $1 million. Oof, these prices are making you sweat I assume. 

5. Chinese Juniper, Japan: $750,000

This gem of a juniper bonsai plant is also a prized possession at the Shunkaen Bonsai Museum that is worth $750,000!

6. Five Needle Pine Bonsai, Japan: $600,000

Japanese white pine trees, also known as five-needle pines, are among the world’s most expensive bonsai trees. With an estimated yearly height gain of about two feet, the five-needle pine is among the quickest growing bonsai trees in the world. 

As a result, these trees grow to be among the tallest bonsai trees, which contributes to their high price tag. Most five-needle bonsai trees are years (or centuries) old, with one fetching $600,000 at an auction in Japan.

7. Juniper at Shunkaen Bonsai Museum, Japan: $400,000

Kunio Kobayashi owns and operates the Shunkaen Bonsai Museum, which is home to a range of rare and old bonsai trees. This one is a unique tree recognised for its extraordinary age; the tree is estimated to be around 800 years old and valued at least $400,000.

8. Sargent Juniper Bonsai Tree, Japan: $350,000

At the Taikan-ten Bonsai exhibition in Kyoto, this extraordinarily expensive Bonsai tree was offered for sale (and was actually sold).

9. Juniper Bonsai at the Taikan-ten, Japan: $180,000

Every year in November, the Taikan-ten is held in Kyoto. The quality of the displayed Bonsai is extremely high. This bonsai was exhibited in the 39th Taikan-ten and was sold for $180,000.

The Taikan-ten is among the few traditional exhibits that includes displays of Bonsai, including scrolls and suiseki. But some current displays might be discovered as well.

10. Japanese White Pine, Japan: $160,000

The price of this Japanese white pine Bonsai is $160,000 USD!

11. Shimpaku Juniper Bonsai, Japan: $120,000

Seven bonsai trees, along with a 400-year-old shimpaku juniper, were stolen from a Japanese couple’s garden, leaving them heartbroken. The duo is pleading with the robbers to take proper care of them. 

According to CNN, the trees were stolen from the couple’s garden in Saitama, near Tokyo, and are worth over $155,000 CAD. The 400-year-old shimpaku juniper tree alone, according to Fuyumi Iimura, wife of the bonsai expert who built the trees, is worth over $120,000.

12. Kimura’s Zelkova Bonsai, Japan: $106,000

Mr. Kimura’s work is one of the most well-known and influential Bonsai in Japan today. His garden is akin to a museum, and anyone who is familiar with Japanese Bonsai will recognise at least half of his collection from magazines and websites. This huge Zelkova is on sale at $106,000.

13. Kimura’s Japanese Black Pine Bonsai, Japan: $106,000

Also one of Kimura’s creations, this Japanese Black Pine bonsai sold for $106,000.

14. Pine Bonsai, Japan: $100,000

This beautiful pine bonsai sold for $100,000 in Japan!

15. Ficus Retusa Linn, Italy: $91,000

Closing this list with a bonsai that costs almost $100,000, with an estimated age of 1,000 years, the Ficus retusa Linn, which can be found at the Crespi Bonsai Museum in Italy, is thought to be the world’s oldest bonsai tree. The founder of the Crespi Bonsai Museum, Luigi Crespi, spent ten years attempting to acquire ownership of the bonsai tree before finally succeeding in 1986.

The tree had previously been cared for and sculpted by Chinese masters, and it was fashioned by Japanese bonsai artist Shotaro Kawahara during its first years in Italy. Since then, Crespi and Alberto Lavazza have been looking after the tree. The tree was installed in a glass pagoda and became the museum’s centerpiece after the Crespi Bonsai Museum opened in 1991.

Conclusion

What an unbelievable list of expensive bonsai trees! Did you even imagine the prices would be this high when you started reading? I know I didn’t. The bonsai trees need love and care, for a long period of time. You have to style the bonsai, maintain it, keep it well-fed and happy, and then after a long while, it turns into the most beautiful and glorious piece of nature that you can build.

This is the reason why bonsai trees are this expensive! We hope you enjoyed reading about these unique bonsai trees!

FAQs

why is bonsai expensive?

Bonsai trees are living creations of craftwork. They hold a prolonged history and practice, and living close to them can help you to comfort and appreciate nature. Because of the maintenance that is required for bonsai trees, quality ones have to be costly. 

• Bonsai needs labor. Typically it’s done and cared for by one or more passaniote artists. Bonsai nurseries usually employ artists to work on them for years and all of the work can be done by specific tools. 

• The older the tree is the more valuable it gets. Some trees take years to grow, for example, ginko bonsai grows for more than two hundred years, so if someone is selling it, the tree is probably with them for generations. 

• Some tree species like Irish yew and Japanese white pine are rare which is why they are more expensive than others. 

• There are two ways to produce bonsai, through seeds and through branch cutting. Reproducing from branch cuttings from the wild is expensive because it’s rare.

• Looks matters, a bonsai with a thick trunk and fuller upper parts is more expensive. 

what is the rareest bonsai tree?

The Ficus Bonsai tree at Crespi, Italy is reported to be over a thousand years old and it is displayed in the Bonsai Museum of Italy called “crespi”. 

What is the oldest bonsai tree in the world?

The oldest bonsai known is the Ficus Retusa Linn, which is assumed over 1000 years old and is now displayed in Italy’s Crespi Bonsai Museum. Luigi Crespi, the museum’s originator, spent ten years trying to possess this bonsai tree before owning it in 1986. The tree was initially tended by Chinese bonsai masters, shaped by Japanese master Shotaro Kawahara in its early years in Italy, and afterward looked after by Alberto Lavazza and Crespi himself. In 1991, when the museum opened, the Ficus bonsai became a centerpiece, shown in a marvelous glass pagoda.

who is the king of bonsai?

Japanese black pines are often referred to as the king of bonsai. This may be claimed due to their innate strength; they usually grow to have powerful trunks and thick lush foliage. Rugged bark doesn’t hurt either. King or not, the best of the black pines are undeniably among the most powerful bonsai in the world.

How much is an 800-year-old bonsai tree worth?

$1.3 million. There’s an 800-year-old white pine bonsai owned by Master Kunio Kobayashi, is known as one of the costliest bonsai in the world. Master Kunio Kobayashi runs the Shunkaen Bonsai Museum in Tokoyo and he had to spend $1.3 million to possess the bonsai for the museum. 

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