CRYPTO GATEWAY

CryptoGodKing is available for secondary market purchase on OpenSea

"CryptoGodKing is dead" said Steve Pikelny upon the completion of his instant-cult-classic artblocks factory project. With 180 pieces minted, this unchanging group of CryptoGodKing incarnations will inhabit the Ethereal realm for eternity. No more, no less. And while Pikelny hasn't totally ruled out the idea of a sequel project, the original CGK collection will undoubtedly command a premium due to its low mint size and historical significance in a larger body of work.

Read our interview with the artist

Unsurprisingly, serious collectors have taken notice of this project. Immediately following the completion of the drop, several collectors went on a tear, snatching up whatever they could get their hands on. In fact, more than 10% of the set was traded in a 24 hour period, bringing up the price floor 4x! And since then sales have only increased.

To be sure, these weren't bottom-barrel pieces -- some were definite collectables with rare features. But while the discerning eye was certainly rewarded for taking advantage of a momentarily inefficient market, some collectors are just learning about CryptoGodKing for the first time. If you are one of those collectors, then hopefully this article will give you a solid jumping-off point so you can also get in on the collecting action!

A High Level Glance

CryptoGodKing #53, one of 39 animating incarnations

While each of the 180 CrpyotGodKing incarnations certainly stand alone as individual visually stunning pieces, the population of mints really lends itself to collecting. The distribution of features is masterfully crafted such that collectors can look for rare characteristics along a number of different dimensions. Additionally, the design of the project still leaves room for unexpected variations where the combination of certain features just pops in a way not fully captured by the explicit feature set.

Of course, anyone who has seen the series is aware of the most saught after feature: animations. Only 39 of the 180 incarnations have some sort of animating component, and the mere hint of movements can easily quintupple the value of any given piece. (All animating features in this guide are *asterisked*). But what most people don't realize is that there are multiple types of animations that interplay with the piece in different ways. If you want to cut through the chaff to understand these dynamics, then this article is for you.

Pyramid Features

The body of CryptoGodKing itself is the center piece of this project, consisting of different variations of triangles and circles. And while the geometry is fairly simple, it leades to a number of interesting combinations. In addition to the layout, also note that the pyramid can have between one and five layers of varying thickness. One of the rarest features of the project

Eye of Providence

This is the standard CryptoGodKing eye, comprising of partial upwards and downwards curves to make an eye shape

Downward Gaze

The presence of a top circle leaves the pupil looking downward

Upward Gaze

The presence of a bottom circle leaves the pupil looking upward

Infinite Gaze

Both top and bottom circles are present, creating an eye in the intersection

Golden Gaze

Both top and bottom circles are present, but they lack the partial curves around the intersection

No eye feature listed

Some incarnations have no eye feature at all

False Profit

The triangle portion appears upside down

Blinded

The absence of a pupil

Invisible Hand

The triangle does not appear at all

Monolithic

The body of CryptoGodKing is a single color

*Charon's Obol*

A rare pupil animation. View on artblocks.io

Backgrounds

The aura of the CryptoGodKing incarnation is largely determined by which background it has. And to be sure, this is perhaps the most diverse quality of the project. With four categories of backgrounds, it's easy to miss the subtlties of each set of features.

Purity: 1

One of the most simplest CGKs, but also one of the rarest. This incarnation's empty background speaks for itself

Archs: 110

The most common background, but also the most dynamic and popular. Three arcs surround CryptoGodKing, leading to a multitude of transfixing patterns. Some of these features are so arcane, however, it is unclear how they affect the final output. As a result, these will be left out of the guide. For the curious, it may be fruitful to research: Mystical Munificence, Cosmic Inflation, Financial Burden, and Karmic Interest.

UPDATE: A reader has pointed out that Financial Burden appears to correspond to the stroke weight of the arcs. A big thank you to NFT_Maniac42069

Three Jewels

The arcs typically line up in a triangle pattern

Blood Diamonds

While the center of the arcs typically line up in a triangle pattern, this variation lines up in an upside down triangle pattern

Six Pillars

What is typically three sets of arcs is now six

Legal Tender

The three arcs line up perfectly behind CryptoGodKing to create this nice, neat pattern

Cosmic Contango/Cycle of Rebirth

It's not clear what the difference between these two traits are, but it appears to generlaly lead to a nice curvature

Gravy Train

Both sides of the arc line up straight

Arch Amulat

A double stroke of the arcs

*5D Time Dilation*

Perhaps the most desired feature of the collection, the arcs animate here to create a truly trancendental experience. View on artblocks.io

Summary

Feature	Count
Three Jewels	60
Blood Diamonds	40
Gravy Train	28
5D Time Dilation	19
Arch Amulat	11
Six Pillars	10
Cycle of Rebirth	9
Cosmic Contango	8
Legal Tender	3
Mystical Munificence	2

Sacred Geometry: 45

This background consists of three components: triangles (Trinity), circles (Token), and crosses (Cross)., and the names seem to make sense: "Holy" corresponds to the feature in its normal state and "Gilded" refers to a double stroke of alternate color. The Trinity also appears to be "Unholy" if it is upside down.

This background also hosts an animating feature that leads to an interesting Moiré effect: the Aura of Affluence.

An Unholy Trinity

A Gilded Holy Token

A Gilded Holy Cross in front of a Gilded Holy Token and a Holy Trinity

*Aura of Affluence*

An overlay of shapes emminate from the center View on artblocks.io

Summary

Feature	Count
Gilded Token/Holy Token/Gilded Holy Token	39
Gilded Cross/Holy Cross/Gilded Holy Cross	21
Gilded Trinity/Holy Trinity/Gilded Holy Trinity	24
Unholy Trinity/Gilded Unholy Trinity	15
Aura of Affluence	10

Astral Projection

An Astral Projection Coefficient of 595.78

An Astral Projection Coefficient of 195.05

Vestigial Vessel

An almost Jesus-fishy set of curves

*Heaven and Earth*

An animating component on the top and an animating component on the bottom. View on artblocks.io

*Angelic Affluence*

A one-of-a-kind animation. It can only be seen to be believed View on artblocks.io

Color Spectrum

In the final bucket of features, there are six color spectrums that CryptoGodKing may reincarnate within. These aren't color palletes perse, as the hue appears to be totally dynamic from piece to piece. But, each of the six spectrums have their own distinct vibe: Matte is chooses more muted, washed out colors, Shadow goes dark with the background and light with the stroke, Luminous goes with a bright background and dark stroke, and Neon chooses two fully-saturated colors of opposite hues. Meanwhile, Yin/Yang (black & white) and Yang/Yin (white & black) are two of the rarest features overall

Matte

Shadow

Luminous

Neon

Yin/Yang

Yang/Yin

Conclusion & Other Pleasing Variations

All in all, CryptoGodKing should keep collectors busy for quite some time. Between the differen backgrounds, pyramid features, colors, and animation types, there's a lot of ways to slice and dice this project. But CGK fans must remember that statistical rarity isn't everything. Some incarnations just feel special due to combinations of common features, and happen to line up in unique ways. So remember to appreciate each unique piece on its own merits for this amazing project.