The blue guitar Kurt Cobain rocked out with in Nirvana's seminal '90s 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' music video is expected to fetch up to US$800,000 (NZ$1.16 milion) when it goes up for auction next month.
With 'Smells Like Teen Spirit', the first single from the band's iconic 1991 album Nevermind, racking up more than 1.4 billion views on YouTube, the 1969 blue Fender is arguably one of the most famous in rock, said Martin Nolan, executive director of Julien's Auctions.
"This is one of the most iconic guitars ever to come to the auction block, this is the blue Mustang Fender guitar, one of Kurt Cobain's favourite guitars of all time," said Nolan, standing beside a display of Kurt Cobain memorabilia at Julien's Auctions Beverly Hills showroom.
"The guitar comes with its original case and also the guitar strap, so that's... really important to collectors when they come to the auction to know the originality," said Nolan, who noted that the guitar has stayed with the family since Cobain's death in 1994.
The Cobain guitar is the star lot in the auction house's Music Icons auction, taking place in New York and online from May 20-22.
Nolan said the auction house has conservatively estimated a price range for the guitar of US$600,000 to $800,000 but noted "that's a very conservative auction estimate."
The auction house said a portion of the proceeds would go to a mental health charity.
The auction also features other items, including an original Kurt Cobain artwork of Michael Jackson that is expected to fetch up to US$40,000 and one of his cars, a 1965 Dodge Dart, expected to fetch between US$400,000 to $600,000.
Reuters
