LONDON – More than 1,400 of Freddie Mercury’s personal items, including flamboyant stage costumes, handwritten drafts of iconic songs like “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and his beloved baby grand piano, are going on display at a free exhibition in Sotheby’s London before being auctioned.
The collection, which had been left to Mercury’s close friend Mary Austin, had remained untouched in his west London mansion for 30 years since his death in 1991. Austin, now 72, decided to sell almost all the items to “close this very special chapter in my life” and “put my affairs in order.”
The exhibition showcases previously unseen drafts of hits such as “Don’t Stop Me Now,” “We Are the Champions,” and “Somebody to Love.” The handwritten draft of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” where Mercury considered naming it “Mongolian Rhapsody” before crossing it out, is expected to fetch between £800,000 to £1.2 million ($1 million to $1.5 million).
The highlight of the exhibition is Mercury’s Yamaha baby grand piano, set to sell for £2 million to £3 million ($2.5 million to $3.8 million). The piano played a significant role in Mercury’s musical and personal life from 1975 until his death.
Among the hundreds of items, there are dazzling sequinned catsuits, leather jackets, a red cape, and crown worn on his last Queen performance in 1986, as well as a collection of Japanese silk kimonos.
Personal and intimate items include a school book with Mercury’s name, Fred Bulsara, dating from the 1960s when he had just arrived in the U.K. with his family from Zanzibar. Visitors can explore Mercury’s detailed dinner party seating plans, handwritten invitations to his famous birthday bashes, and more.
The auction will also include Mercury’s art collection featuring works by Picasso, Dali, and Chagall, as well as his antique furniture and cat figurines.
The entire Sotheby’s gallery space is dedicated to the exhibition, making it the first time the auction house has opened all 15 galleries to the public. The exhibition, titled “Freddie Mercury: A World of His Own,” will be free to view from Friday until September 5, with the items being sold in a series of auctions later that month.
Sotheby’s expects buyers to include museums and Mercury’s global fanbase. Despite the possibility of the items being displayed in a museum, the decision to auction them individually honors Mercury’s wishes, as he “didn’t want a stuffy museum,” according to Sotheby’s furniture and decorative arts specialist Thomas Williams.