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- Sotheby’s auction house in London is selling 1,400 items from the estate of Freddie Mercury, who died in 1991.
- Among the items up for auction: the backing suite for which Mercury composed the classic “Bohemian Rhapsody,” among other items.
- The rock star’s grand piano was sold at auction for nearly €2 million. However, the highest bid estimates were between 2.3 and 3.5 million euros.
In addition to handwritten lyrics and stage costumes, the Queen Singer’s artwork, paintings, furniture and tableware are also being auctioned. The items will go under the hammer by next Wednesday.
legend:
Yamaha G2 Baby Grand Piano at Sotheby’s Auction House. The piano went under the hammer on September 6th.
AP Photo/Yui Mok
A note worth 1.6 million euros
The note on which Mercury recorded the first draft of “Bohemian Rhapsody” has been sold at auction for 1.6 million euros. A draft shows that the mega-song originally had a different title: “Mongolian Rhapsody”. However, the word “Mongolian” has been crossed out.
The exhibition attracted 140 thousand people
The auction house had previously auctioned items of the queen as part of its “Freddie Mercury: A World of His Own” exhibition. The exhibition in the Kensington district of London was visited by a total of 140 thousand people. It was free to access and ran from August 4 to September 5.
legend:
This silk jacket was shown, among other things, at the exhibition in Kensington, London. The exhibition ran until September 5 and was available free of charge.
AP Photo/Christy Wigglesworth
Among them was the front door of Mercury’s Garden Lodge property. The front door written on by fans has sold at auction for €480,000, 20 times the expected amount.
SRF News 4, September 7, 2023, 3:30 a.m.; sda/berx;abes
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