Around 1500 personal items from Freddie Mercury’s personal estate will go under the hammer in September this year.
The vast collection includes costumes worn on stage, 19th-century art, and many other pieces of memorabilia owned by the late singer.
Mercury died from Aids in 1991, and is best known to music lovers as being the frontman for Queen. His estate has been left in the care of close friend Mary Austin, having remained largely untouched in the London townhouse he once owned. Austin has said that it was a difficult decision to put the items up for sale.
A 19th-century painting by French artist James Jacques Tissot depicting his Irish muse and lover Kathleen Newton is estimated to sell for between £400,000 – £600,000 (NZ$815,000 to $1.2 million), the most expensive item published so far.
Other items include a silver Tiffany & Co comb, the famous rhinestone-studded crown, Mercury’s 1975 Martin D-35 acoustic guitar in its original case, and the red velvet cape worn at Queen’s final performance in 1986.
Also up for sale are nine pages of handwritten lyrics to the popular song “We Are the Champions,” written by Mercury. The collector’s item is said to fetch between $407,000 to $611,000.
New York, Lost Angeles, and Hong Kong will show off just some of the items on a tour in June prior to the auction later in the year.
The auction will be held over three days in September and a portion of the money made will be donated to the Mercury Phoenix Trust and the Elton John Aids Foundation.
