Queen's Freddie Mercury's last show crown among 1,500 personal items up for auction

Freddie Mercury's iconic collection of costumes, fine art, and handwritten working lyrics for his famous songs will be up for auction in September. Sotheby's announced that Queen's frontman, who died at the age of 45 in 1991 from AIDS-related pneumonia, left his collection to his close friend, Mary Austin. The collection, which includes prints by Picasso and Matisse, is estimated to sell for millions of dollars.

Austin, who has kept most of the items as Mercury left them, has made the "difficult decision" to sell them, Sotheby's said. Among the items up for auction are the handwritten lyrics for "We Are the Champions" and "Killer Queen," estimated to fetch between $250,000 and $375,000 and $100,000 and $150,000, respectively.

Mercury's red fake fur cloak and rhinestone-studded crown, which he wore during Queen's final concert together in 1986, will also be up for sale. The crown is estimated to sell for $75,000-100,000, while the cloak is expected to fetch up to $20,000.

The auction will include approximately 1,500 items, including the silver moustache comb from Tiffany & Co. that is expected to sell for $500-750. A painting by 19th-century French artist James Tissot, titled "Type of Beauty," is estimated to sell for $500,000-750,000, the highest of any item listed in press materials.

The items will be exhibited in New York, Los Angeles, London and Hong Kong during a tour in June before being auctioned over three days in September. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to charity.

According to an LA Times article, Mary Austin, Mercury’s longtime friend, inherited his estate after his death and the collection takes viewers deeper into the individual and the man she knew.

A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Mercury Phoenix Trust and the Elton John Aids Foundation, which both fund projects addressing HIV/AIDS, they reported.