New Delhi, January 18: After Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado revealed that she had presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to current US President Donald Trump, the Nobel institution issued a detailed clarification reaffirming a long-standing rule: a Nobel Peace Prize cannot be transferred, shared or revoked under any circumstances.

The clarification followed widespread debate over whether a laureate can symbolically “pass on” the honour by handing over the medal. According to the Nobel Foundation, while a laureate may dispose of the physical medal, diploma or prize money as they wish, the identity of the Nobel Peace Prize recipient remains permanent and fixed in history.

‘The Nobel Prize And The Laureate Are Inseparable’

In its statement, the Nobel body explained that a Peace Prize laureate receives two central symbols: a gold medal and a diploma, with the prize money awarded separately. Regardless of what happens to these items later, “it is and remains the original laureate who is recorded in history as the recipient of the prize”.

Even if a medal or diploma comes into someone else’s possession, this does not alter who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The institution further underlined that the prize cannot be reassigned or shared once announced, and it can never be revoked. The decision, it said, applies “for all time”. ‘Nobel Prize Cannot Be Revoked, Shared, or Transferred to Others’: Nobel Committee Clarifies Rules After Maria Corina Machado Presents Peace Medal to Donald Trump.

No Comment On Political Choices Of Laureates

The statement also made clear that the Norwegian Nobel Committee does not comment on the political actions or choices of laureates after the award. The prize is granted based on contributions evaluated at the time of the committee’s decision, and the body does not engage in day-to-day commentary on later political developments involving laureates. Maria Corina Machado Hands Nobel Peace Prize Medal to US President Donald Trump at White House, Cites His ‘Commitment’ to Her Country.

Laureates Free To Sell, Donate Or Give Away Medals

At the same time, the Nobel Foundation clarified that there are no restrictions on what a laureate may do with the physical medal, diploma or prize money. Laureates are legally free to keep them, donate them, sell them or give them away — a freedom that has resulted in several notable and sometimes controversial cases over the years.

Prominent Cases Of Nobel Medals Changing Hands

One of the most high-profile recent examples involves Dmitry Muratov, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021. In June 2022, Muratov sold his medal at auction for a record USD 103.5 million — the highest price ever paid for a Nobel medal. He donated the entire amount to UNICEF to support Ukrainian refugee children.

Another example is former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who received the Peace Prize in 2001. In February 2024, his widow Nane Annan donated Annan’s Peace Prize medal and diploma to the United Nations Office at Geneva, where they are now permanently displayed.

Norway’s first Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Christian Lous Lange, is another example. His medal has been on long-term loan to the Nobel Peace Center since 2005 and is now permanently exhibited there.

Medals Sold For Personal Or Academic Reasons

Several Nobel laureates from other categories have also parted with their medals. Physicist David Thouless’s Nobel Prize medal was donated by his family to Trinity Hall, University of Cambridge.

In 2014, James Watson, co-discoverer of the structure of DNA, sold his Nobel Prize medal for USD 4.76 million, with part of the proceeds earmarked for scientific research. The medal was later returned to him by the buyer. Similarly, physicist Leon Lederman sold his Nobel medal in 2015 to help cover medical expenses related to dementia.

A Controversial Historical Episode

The Nobel Foundation also recalled one of the most controversial episodes involving a Nobel medal. In 1943, Norwegian author Knut Hamsun, a Nobel Prize in Literature laureate, sent his medal to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels as a gesture of thanks after meeting him in Germany. The current whereabouts of that medal remain unknown.

Nobel Peace Prize Medal: Design And Symbolism

The Nobel Peace Prize medal itself carries deep symbolism. Cast in 18-carat gold, the medal weighs 196 grams and measures 6.6 centimetres in diameter. It was designed in 1901 by Norwegian sculptor Gustav Vigeland. The obverse features a portrait of Alfred Nobel, while the reverse shows three naked men with their arms around one another’s shoulders, symbolising fraternity. The Latin inscription pro pace et fraternitate gentium translates to “for peace and the fraternity of nations”.

A Prize That Cannot Be Passed On

As the Nobel institution has reiterated, while Nobel medals may change hands through donation, sale or personal gesture, the Nobel Peace Prize itself remains forever tied to the original laureate. From Maria Corina Machado to Dmitry Muratov, and from Kofi Annan to Knut Hamsun, history records the prize - not the possession of the medal.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 18, 2026 05:29 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).