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A piece of bona fide rock history is coming to London next month. Kurt Cobain’s acoustic guitar – which is the most expensive guitar ever sold and was apparently the last guitar he ever played – is going on display in the capital.
The guitar will be part of an exhibition titled ‘Kurt Cobain Unplugged’ at the museum of the Royal College of Music (RCM – which was recently crowned the world’s best place to study music), and it’ll feature alongside Cobain’s mothy old cardigan, which he wore for his legendary MTV Unplugged performance.
The exhibition will mark a few ‘firsts’. It’ll be the first time the guitar has gone on display in Europe, and it’ll be the first time that it’s gone on show alongside Cobain’s battered olive-green mohair cardigan. Curated by American rock journalist Alan di Perna and the RCM’s Gabriele Rossi Rognoni, the exhibition will also feature Nirvana memorabilia, including gig posters and collectible vinyl.
Kurt Cobain’s acoustic guitar is a Martin D-18E which he modified to be played left-handed. According to Courtney Love, it was the last guitar Kurt Cobain ever played. After being passed down to Kurt’s daughter Frances Bean Cobain then given to her ex-husband in a divorce settlement, in 2020 it went up for auction and was bought by Australian businessman Peter Freedman for a whopping $6 million (£4.54 million).
Freedman has loaned it to the RCM for this exhibition, which will open on June 3. Tickets are on sale now for £5, and you can buy them here.
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