A collection of rare Prince memorabilia has sold for more than $350,000 in an online sale with Boston-based RR Auction.
The company’s Marvels of Modern Music sale featured almost 120 items from Prince’s incredible career, including outfits, handwritten lyrics, awards, recordings, manuscripts and personal items.
Many of the lots soared far beyond their estimates, clearly demonstrating the demand for Prince memorabilia since his tragic death back in April 2016.
Leading the collection was Prince’s handwritten acceptance speech for Best International Artist at the 1993 Brit Awards. The speech was addressed to pop star Kylie Minogue, who was due to read the speech on Prince’s behalf, although the award was eventually accepted for him by Cher.
Valued at around $2,500, the speech eventually sold for $26,228.
Another big-selling manuscript was Prince’s handwritten draft set of lyrics for ‘The Screams of Passion’, the first single released from his 1985 album The Family. Signed and dating from 1984, the lyrics trebled their pre-sale estimate of $8,000 to sell for $23,555.
The auction also featured a large number of Prince’s outfits, worn on stage, on-screen and from his personal wardrobe.
The most valuable item was a lace and beaded jacket worn on-screen in Under a Cherry Moon, Prince’s second feature film and his directorial debut. Although the film was a critical and commercial flop, Prince’s star power pushed the jacket to a final price of $22,724.
Further highlights included a black polka dot vest worn extensively on stage and in photo-shoots, which sold for $14,150; a black-and-white striped bolero jacket designed for the 1993 Act II Tour of Europe, which sold for $13,177; and an iconic white ruffled shirt worn by Prince during the Purple Rain era, which sold for $10,631.
There were also notable results for Prince’s personally-used rhinestone-studded waking cane, custom designed by Gianni Versace, which realized $22,512; and a handwritten note to a friend including the line "We dance & sing everyday getting ready 4 a summer tour", which sold for $14,845 – more than seven times its estimate.
