(London) Guitars by Mark Knopfler of the British group Dire Straits, including that of their success Money for Nothingreached hundreds of thousands of pounds at auction at Christie’s in London on Wednesday.
The centerpiece of the sale, an original Gibson Les Paul Standard from 1959, fetched 693,000 pounds, fees included ($1.2 million).
According to Christie’s, this is an auction record for this model.
It was notably used during tours in 2001 (Sailing To Philadelphia Tour) and 2008 (Kill To Get Crimson Tour).
Mark Knopfler, now 74, acquired it from Bobby Tench of the Jeff Beck Group. On the back of the guitar, some varnish is missing, where the instrument rubbed against its owner’s belt. It was estimated at between 300,000 and 500,000 pounds (between $511,000 and $852,000).
Another piece of choice, the guitar of Money for Nothing And Brothers in Arms sold for 592,200 pounds ($1 million)
It was also on this instrument, purchased by the artist in 1983 in New York, that Mark Knopfler played at the concert Live Aid in 1985. Christie’s had estimated it at between 10,000 and 15,000 pounds ($17,000 and $26,000).
The red and white Schecter guitar Walk of Life sold for 415,800 pounds ($708,000) – a record for a Schecter – during this sale which began two hours late due to the “extraordinary interest” it aroused, according to Christie’s .
However, the records reached by Kurt Cobain guitars ($4.7 and $6 million) at auctions in 2022 and 2020 were not reached.
Another particularly remarkable piece in the Mark Knopfler sale is a 1958 Gibson ES-335, one of around fifty examples produced in the first year of the first semi-hollow body electric guitar (semi-hollow body), was sold for 176,400 pounds ($300,000).
In total, the sale includes 121 lots – guitars and amps – with at least a quarter of the profits going to charities, including the British Red Cross.