The guitar that holds the record for the most expensive guitar ever sold at auction is Kurt Cobain’s 1959 Martin D-18E, which fetched a staggering $6.01 million in June 2020. This acoustic-electric guitar was famously played by the Nirvana frontman during the band’s iconic MTV Unplugged performance in 1993, just five months before his untimely death. The performance, which took place in New York City, has since gone down in music history as one of the greatest live acoustic performances ever, adding a layer of mystique and reverence to the guitar Cobain played.
Bidding for the guitar began at $1 million, but the price quickly skyrocketed, with Rode Microphones founder Peter Freedman ultimately winning the auction. Freedman, an avid supporter of the performing arts, purchased the guitar with plans to take it on a global tour, using the proceeds to fund performing arts initiatives around the world. He described the guitar as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” recognizing not only its historical significance but its emotional weight in the context of Cobain’s legacy.
Cobain’s Martin D-18E was more than just a guitar; it came with its original case, which Cobain had personalized with a poster from the band Poison Idea’s 1990 album Feel the Darkness. The instrument itself is rare, with only 302 of its model ever made, making it a collector’s dream even without its connection to the Nirvana frontman. Its sale broke the previous record held by David Gilmour’s Fender Stratocaster, which sold for nearly $4 million in 2019 at a charity auction.
