Kurt Cobain’s guitar from Smells Like Teen Spirit video to go on display in Newbridge

A guitar owned by Nirvana’s late frontman Kurt Cobain will be on display in the Museum of Style Icons at Newbridge Silverware.

The vintage left-handed turquoise 1969 Fender Mustang was used in the late frontman’s 1991 music video Smells Like Teen Spirit.

The world-famous instrument will be on display to the public at Newbridge Silverware in Kildare from May 5 until May 7.

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Cobain’s painting of Michael Jackson and his own ‘Nevermind Australian Tour 1992’ laminated personal backstage pass will also be on display.

Speaking ahead of the exhibition, Martin Nolan of Julien’s Auctions said: “Kurt Cobain was a hugely influential figure not just in music, but in popular culture too. Kurt Cobain’s acoustic guitar sold for a record breaking US$ 6 million in 2020 and that guitar currently holds the record for the most expensive guitar ever sold.

“This electric Fender Mustang guitar from ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ was Kurt’s favourite guitar and is much more iconic and an extremely important piece. It was also used in the ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ music video and also while recording the albums ‘Nevermind’ and ‘In Utero’.

“This guitar has been on display at the MoPop Museum in Seattle since 2010. In my opinion this guitar could beat the current world record for a guitar sold at auction and could sell for in excess of US $10 million.”

The rock star’s Irish roots are well known, and while Cobain believed that his family originated from County Cork, his ancestors in fact emigrated to the US from Carrickmore, County Tyrone, in 1875.

The guitar and other Kurt Cobain and Nirvana items will go for auction by Julien’s Auctions in a celebrity studded auction at the Hard Rock Café in New York from May 20 to May 22.

Executive director of Julien’s Martin Nolan said: “We consider this guitar to be not only the most important artifact to ever come to auction of Kurt Cobain or Nirvana, it’s also currently the single most important piece of pop culture history to come to auction. The video of Kurt playing this guitar has been viewed some two billion times and is culturally one of the most influential moments in rock-n-roll.”

The exhibition is available to view at the Museum of Style Icons, Newbridge Silverware, Newbridge, Co. Kildare, Ireland from Thursday May 5 to Saturday May 7 2022.

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