Pink Floyd Guitar Sells for Record $14.55 Million

A black Fender Stratocaster used by David Gilmour on six Pink Floyd albums sold at Christie's for $14.55 million after a 21-minute online bidding war.

A black Fender Stratocaster played by David Gilmour sold for $14.55 million at Christie's. The guitar was used on six Pink Floyd albums, including The Dark Side of the Moon. It was purchased after a 21-minute online bidding war and set a new auction record for a guitar. The instrument had been part of Jim Irsay's collection. Sale details: - The guitar sold for $14.55 million to an online bidder, according to Christie's spokespeople. - David Gilmour bought the black Fender Stratocaster in 1970 from Manny's Music in Midtown Manhattan. - Gilmour used the guitar on every Pink Floyd recording and many performances from 1972 to 1983, and he returned to it in 2014 to record parts of The Endless River. - The price exceeded the previous auction record of $6.01 million, set in 2020 by the sale of Kurt Cobain's Martin D-18E. - The instrument was sold from the collection of Jim Irsay, who acquired it in 2019 for just over $5 million. - Christie's reported other high sales that day for guitars tied to Kurt Cobain and Jerry Garcia, and three more auctions from Irsay's collection are scheduled this month. Summary: The sale establishes a new auction high for a guitar and reflects strong market interest in instruments associated with major artists. The guitar came from Jim Irsay's collection, and Christie's has three additional auctions from that collection planned this month.