A guitar used by Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour, most recently owned by late Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, was sold for a record $14.55 million at auction.
The Fender Stratocaster guitar, known as the “Black Strat,” was sold Thursday by the Christie’s auction house. The final sales price far outstripped what Christie’s had expected going into their auction of Irsay’s collection; the estimated sales price was between $2 million and $4 million.
The final price also smashed the previous record for most expensive guitar ever sold, beating out the $6 million sale in 2020 of a guitar once used by Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain during an appearance on “MTV Unplugged,” according to Rolling Stone.
Mr. Gilmour used the guitar, which he bought in 1970, to record some of Pink Floyd’s biggest albums, including 1973’s “The Dark Side of the Moon,” 1975’s “Wish You Were Here,” 1977’s “Animals” and 1979’s “The Wall,” according to the guitar’s lot page. He also used it on the tour for “The Wall.”
Previously, Irsay, who died in May 2025, had bought it at a Christie’s auction of lots owned by Mr. Gilmour in 2019.
The identity of the new owner of the “Black Strat” has not been publicly disclosed.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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