Freddie Mercury Auction Smashes Estimates, Netting $50.4 Million
At the Sotheby’s in London sale, items like moustache combs blew past estimates.
Freddie Mercury’s crown and accompanying cloak went for a total of $794,000, almost ten times the auction estimate.
Photographer: Barney HindleAn auction of items once owned by Queen frontman Freddie Mercury has netted £39.9 million ($50.4 million), greatly exceeding the £7.6 million to £11.3 million estimate that auction house Sotheby’s in London originally forecast.
Over a one-week period, Sotheby’s auctioned off more than 30,000 objects that had belonged to the pop icon and subsequently bequeathed to his longtime friend Mary Austin. Estimates for the proceeds of the combined six auctions had already been blown out of the water by the end of a raucous opening auction night, replete with moneyed super fans sporting homemade costumes in homage to the singer. A spokesperson for Sotheby’s said it was the highest ever total for any celebrity sale.