Video: $14.55 Million for a Guitar? David Gilmour’s Black Strat Breaks Records
Historic Sale at Christie’s Auction
A black Fender Stratocaster once played by David Gilmour, the guitarist of Pink Floyd, sold for $14.55 million US at a live auction on Thursday, setting a record for the most expensive guitar ever sold. The instrument, known as the Black Strat, was featured in a packed room at Christie’s, where buyers competed in about 20 minutes of bidding before an unnamed bidder won the guitar.
The Black Strat stands out not just because of its price, but because of its place in rock history. Gilmour used this guitar on six of Pink Floyd’s albums, including the classic The Dark Side of the Moon. The sale broke the previous record of $6.01 million, paid for a Martin guitar played by Kurt Cobain during his MTV Unplugged performance at a Julien’s auction in 2020.
Gilmour’s Own Words About the Guitar
Gilmour first bought the Black Strat in New York in 1970 after much of his band’s gear was stolen early in a U.S. tour. In a 2018 interview with BBC Radio broadcaster Matt Everitt, he explained how the guitar became central to his music. “It became my main guitar … the one I used pretty much on everything unless there was a reason to want a different sound,” he said.
Over the years, the Black Strat went through many changes. Gilmour altered its parts and setup to explore new sounds. The guitar also went on display at a Hard Rock Café before returning to the stage when Pink Floyd reunited for Live 8 in London’s Hyde Park in 2005.
When Gilmour decided to sell the guitar in 2019 to raise money for charity, he spoke about how the instrument had been a part of his creative process for decades. In an interview with Christie’s that year, he said, “It’s been my experimental work bed for all sorts of stuff throughout the years.”
Jim Irsay’s Collection and Thursday’s Auction
At the 2019 sale, the Black Strat was bought by Jim Irsay, the owner of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts, for $3.975 million. Irsay, a well‑known music collector, assembled a large group of instruments and cultural items over many years. After his death in 2025, his holdings have been sold in multiple auctions this month.
Thursday’s auction included 44 lots from Irsay’s collection, all of which were sold. The Black Strat was the headline item, but other pieces also drew strong interest from buyers.
Other Records Set at the Event
Several guitars sold on Thursday made the list of the most expensive ever sold at auction. A custom guitar played for more than a decade by Jerry Garcia and used during his final performances with Grateful Dead fetched $11.56 million. A guitar played by Cobain on the albums Nevermind and In Utero, and seen in the “Smells Like Teen Spirit” music video, brought $6.9 million.
Two guitars linked to Eric Clapton also sold for high prices: a cream‑era Gibson SG known as “the Fool,” which went for $3.003 million, and a Martin acoustic used on his MTV Unplugged performance, which sold for $4.101 million. The total for all lots sold on Thursday, including the auction house commission, was just over $84 million.
