A guitar used by Slash of Guns N’ Roses during the chart-topping rock group’s Not In This Lifetime tour has fetched more than £230,000 at auction.
The photo-matched, stage-used and autographed Gibson Les Paul ‘59 Custom Shop guitar was played during the US band’s 2016 tour, which saw Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan reunite for the first time since 1993.
The instrument was sold for £233,100 at Propstore auction house in London on Thursday as part of the Music Memorabilia Live Auction collection.
According to Propstore, the sale makes it the most expensive Slash guitar ever sold at auction.
It was one of 327 rare instruments, handwritten lyrics, stage-used pieces and personal artefacts sold at the auction, achieving a total of £1.9 million.
A jacket worn by the late George Michael during the music video for his 1987 hit single Faith fetched £176,400.
A gold microphone presented to rock band Queen and used by frontman Freddie Mercury sold for £151,200, which is significantly higher than the £30,000 to £60,000 it was expected to sell for.
The microphone was part of Peter Hince’s Queen collection.
Mr Hince said: “I’m absolutely thrilled with how the auction has turned out, especially seeing Freddie’s gold microphone achieve such a strong price.
“It means a lot to know these pieces are going to fans who truly appreciate what Queen meant and still means today.
“I’ve really enjoyed working with Propstore on this, and I’m so pleased to see the collection find such an enthusiastic audience.”
An autographed large-format promotional poster for John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Double Fantasy, signed by the former Beatles singer hours before his death aged 40 in 1980, fetched £75,600.
Other pieces sold included an autographed jacket worn by singer Ed Sheeran in his Shape Of You music video, which went for £66,150, and a fedora worn by Michael Jackson in the 1987 Pepsi advert, which sold for £34,650.
A setlist signed by David Gilmour for Pink Floyd’s From A Momentary Lapse of Reason Tour, which ran from 1987 to 1988, fetched £44,100.
An original proof print for the cover of David Bowie’s album Aladdin Sane sold for £34,650 and a Les Paul Custom 20th Anniversary guitar used and owned by Oasis’s Noel Gallagher fetched £34,650.
Mark Hochman, Propstore’s music specialist, said: “Today’s auction delivered some truly exceptional results, with multiple records broken across the sale.
“The standout performance of Slash’s stage-used Gibson Les Paul guitar, which set a new world record for Slash memorabilia, was a real highlight.
“The strength of the results and the level of engagement from collectors around the world during our Music Live Auction speak to the true enduring appeal of these iconic artists and the material connected to them.”
