There was a time, during the 1970s and ’80s, when rock stars dressed like rock stars. No jeans and t-shirts here, rather fantastical outfits and accessories that elevated ordinary mortals to the status of platform-heeled deity. People such as David Bowie, Elton John and Freddie Mercury. The good news is that now you can dress like one, too, as the latter’s auction with Sotheby’s: Freddie Mercury: A World of His Own includes around 30,000 of his personal items. We’re here to tell you that some of them are wild.
When Mercury passed away in 1991, he left his Garden Lodge property—and its entire contents—to his close friend Mary Austin. Now she has decided to sell it and, boy, are there some treasures in that cave.
From the baby grand piano used to compose Bohemian Rhapsody, with a price estimate of AED 9-14m, to his Flash Gordon t-shirt and red vinyl trousers—a signature of ‘The Game Tour’ in 1980-81—going for a very reasonable pop at AED 70-93k.
Right now, 1,400 items from this amazing collection are currently on display at Sotheby’s London, until the sale begins. The auction calendar sees live auctions on September 6 and 7, with online auctions taking place from September 8-11, 12 and 13.
While you’ll find a number of iconic outfits—not to mention his famed moustache comb—you’ll also discover personal polaroids, sketches, original handwritten lyrics and some serious works of art, with a collection spanning Dali and Goya.
All things considered, this is a serious opportunity to own some amazing memorabilia squirrelled away by an icon of the music world. As for us, we’re going to see if we can get hold of that vacuum cleaner he used in the video to “I Want to Break Free”—iconic and practical, now that’s our sweet spot.
Sotheby’s Freddie Mercury: A World of His Own sale begins on September 6, with auctions running until September 13. Visit Sotheby’s website for more.