The auction, which is set to occur between June 14 and 20 this year at prominent auction house Christies in New York is set to include more than 120 instruments from Gilmour’s own collection.
For many, the auction marks a historic moment as Gilmour parts ways with ‘The Black Strat’ – his iconic 1969 black Fender Stratocaster used to record classic albums such as Dark Side Of The Moon, Wish You Were Here and Animals. Other prominent instruments up for sale include the 12-string acoustic used to write ‘Wish You Were Here’ and a 1954 white Fender Stratocaster with the serial number #0001 and the 1955 Gibson Les Paul used to record the guitar solo in ‘Another Brick In The Wall, Pt. 2,’ among many, many other pristine instruments.
Regarding the auction, Gilmour humorously pointed out that he had never intended to become a guitar collector, and that it was well overdue that he thinned out the herd – “When you’re young and starting off, there are all sorts of reasons for all sorts of guitars. You’re always looking for a new sound – being disorientated on an instrument often gives you a new inspiration. That led me into becoming a bit of a collector – I never quite meant to become a collector of guitars, but that’s the way it panned out.
All proceeds from the mammoth June auction are set to go to charity, with Gilmour expressing his delight in his musical instruments making a different impact to the world – “The money that this sale hopefully will raise is going to go into my charitable foundation and will be used to help do some good in this world. If we can do our little bit to help with those larger, global issues, I’ll be a happier person.”
Check out the full auction listing here.
