One of Kurt Cobain’s most loved guitars, seen in Nirvana’s 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' video, has just sold for a whopping $4.5 million (approx $7million NZD) at auction on Sunday in New York.
The guitar is a 1969 Fender Competition Mustang in Lake Placid Blue that was owned by the Cobain family.
According to the Associated Press, the guitar had previously been displayed as part of The Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay's vast collection of rock antiquities prior to the auction.
On Sunday, the Jim Irsay Collection won the auction, claiming ownership of the instrument, with a portion of the proceeds being donated to the Indianapolis Colts' mental health awareness campaign, Kicking The Stigma.
Kicking The Stigma is an initiative by the Indianapolis Colts and the Jim Irsay family to raise awareness about mental health disorders.
“The fact that a portion of the proceeds will go toward our effort to kick the stigma surrounding mental health makes this acquisition even more special to me.” Irsay said in a statement.
The bidding took place at the Hard Rock Cafe in Times Square from May 20th to 22nd and also featured an all-access pass from the 1993 Nirvana In Utero concert tour, personally owned by legend Cobain himself.
Despite the estimated value of $600,000 USD, Irsay intended to make a $2 million opening offer on the guitar, but ended up spending $5 million on it for a good cause.
After Cobain's MTV Unplugged guitar made headlines for his daughter Frances Bean Cobain losing it to her ex-husband Isaiah Silva, it's bloody good to see the earnings going to a positive and genuine cause.
