Freddie Mercury Collection: 100% of Lots Sell in First Auction, Bringing $15.4 Million

Taking place on the UK’s hottest day of 2023, it romped home with a stunning total of £12.2 Million/$15.4 Million, and was a 'white glove' auction, with every lot sold, fitting the late star’s love of majesty and occasion. With nearly 60 lots ranging from precious objects, jewels, art and clothing to instruments, lyrics, and stage-wear coming under the hammer, the sale represented the span of Freddie’s life and passions. Whether it was the music so close to his heart, his unique sense of showmanship and style, his connoisseurship and expertise for objets and antiques, or his zest for Japanese art and culture, this sale represented a richly drawn, textured portrait of the man.

The garden lodge door, sold for £ 412.750

The sale burst into life with a piece of veritable rock history that immediately signalled the very special quality to the sale – the famous green door to Garden Lodge, the portal to Freddie’s sanctuary and a palimpsest of fandom. Aged over the years with scribbled messages from devoted fans, it marked the boundary between Freddie’s public and private life and inspired a fifteen-minute bidding battle, eventually selling for £412,750, more than twenty five times its pre-sale estimate.

Freddie Mercury, autograph manuscript draft lyrics for 'Bohemian Rhapsody' sold for £ 1.379.000; autograph draft working lyrics for "we are the champions" sold for £ 317.500

At the heart of auction was the life and work of Britain’s greatest rock showman of the 20^thcentury.The Evening Sale also presented the cherished piano upon which Freddie composed this and many more magnificent pieces of music, his prized 1973 Yamaha G2 baby grand. Purchased by the star when he was on the cusp of stardom and remaining his faithful companion for the rest of his life, the piano attracted significant global interest in the run-up to the sale, resulting in a dramatic bidding battle, eventually hammering down for £1,742,000.