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A day after last year’s laureate handed over her Nobel Peace Prize medal, the Norwegian Nobel Committee clarified its stance on the medal’s transferability. The Committee emphasized that while the medal itself can be donated, sold, or given away, the official record of the prize remains linked to the original recipient.
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado presented her medal to President Donald Trump during a meeting at the White House on Thursday, an act she publicly shared. Trump expressed gratitude and announced he plans to retain the medal. The award, which includes a diploma and a sum of 11 million Swedish crowns (about $1.19 million), continues to be officially associated with Machado, despite her decision to transfer the medal.
The Nobel Foundation explained that the medal, diploma, and monetary award are symbolic representations of the recognition granted by the Nobel Committee. These items are freely available for recipients to keep, gift, sell, or donate according to the Foundation’s statutes, but the official laureate record reflects the original awardee.
“The honor and recognition that come with the Nobel Prize are permanently attached to the original recipient,” the Foundation stated. They also highlighted that the physical medal and diploma serve as tangible symbols that confirm someone’s achievement, but do not alter the official historical record.
This isn’t the first instance of a Nobel medal changing hands. In 1943, Nobel Literature laureate Knut Hamsun donated his medal to Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels. More recently, in 2022, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dmitry Muratov sold his medal for $100 million to fund UNICEF initiatives supporting Ukrainian refugee children. In 2024, the late Kofi Annan’s widow donated his 2001 Nobel Peace Prize medal and diploma to the United Nations’ office in Geneva.
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