David Bowie's handwritten 'Starman' lyrics have sold for more than £200,000 at auction.
David Bowie's handwritten lyrics have been auctioned off
The A4 sheet features the words to the music legend's 1972 song as well as corrections and edits made by the star himself and it went under the hammer in Australia breaking the original estimate of £40,000 to sell for for £203,500 - with the winning bidder named as Olivier Varenne, director of acquisitions and alliances and collections at the Museum of Old and New Art (Mona) in Tasmania.
The museum's owner and founder David Walsh said of the sale: "We got carried away and paid too much. It’ll make an appearance in the expanded library we are currently constructing, along with many other items we got carried away with and paid too much for."
Paul Fairweather of Omega Auctions added: “We had almost unprecedented interest from around the world for this historic piece of memorabilia. We had five telephone lines in operation for the sale as well as bidders online and in the room.
"We’re very pleased with the incredible price achieved and are sure the lyrics will be rightly prized and treasured by the winning bidder."
The lyric sheet had been with the same owner since the 1980s and had previously been displayed at the V and A Museum in London as part of the institution's David Bowie collection.
'Starman' featured on Bowie's fifth album 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars' which was released in 1972 and is credited with helping propel the singer to major international fame.
Meanwhile, the iconic spacesuit Bowie wore in his 1980 video for 'Ashes to Ashes' is among the high profile lots fans can get their hands on via Propstore Auction later this year, with the entire sale expected to bring in $1.7 million.
Earlier this month, the 'Space Oddity' hitmaker's estate launched an NFT art sale to raise money for CARE, an international humanitarian charity fronted by his widow, Iman.
‘Bowie on the Blockchain’ featured work paying tribute to the late singer from nine digital artists – including one of Pussy Riot’s singers – which will be released for sale on September 13.
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