English artist Damien Hirst is facing increased scrutiny after allegations surfaced that he backdated over 1,000 pieces of art from his NFT project "The Currency." The project, launched in 2021, involved 10,000 physical paintings, each paired with a corresponding NFT, and sold for $2,000 each. Hirst claimed these paintings were hand-made in 2016. However, sources and verified footage reveal that nearly a dozen artists mass-produced the dotted paintings in 2018 and 2019.

Hirst's lawyers argued that the 2016 date represents the conceptual inception of "The Currency," not the actual production date of each piece. This explanation did not mitigate the controversy, as backdating is frowned upon in the art world. Additionally, Hirst burned the physical versions of the artworks for those who opted to keep the NFTs, claiming it was part of the process of transferring their value digitally.

This is not the first time Hirst has faced accusations of false dating. Earlier, an exposé revealed that three of his formaldehyde sculptures from the 1990s were actually made in 2017. If these new allegations are proven true, they could further damage Hirst's reputation, question the authenticity of his work, and potentially decrease the value of his NFT project.