Mark Knopfler’s guitars set world records at auction in London. A secret war is raging over water in Spain

Several guitars belonging to Dire Straits founder Mark Knopfler (74) achieved world record bids at an auction at London’s Christie’s auction house. A rare 1959 “Gibson Les Paul Standard”, considered the highlight of the auction, sold for the equivalent of just under 813,000 francs (£693,000). The coveted instrument, which the guitarist and singer acquired in 1999, fetched more than the previously estimated 580,000 francs and also far surpassed the previous record of almost 540,000 euros set last year.

A Pensa-Suhr electric guitar built in 1988, for which bids of between 7,000 and 9,300 francs were expected, went under the hammer for the equivalent of 590,000 francs (£504,000). This exceeded the previous record price from 1999 by more than ten times. The instrument was Knopfler’s most used electric guitar between 1988 and 1992. The musician played it, among other things, when he headlined Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday concert at London’s Wembley Stadium with Dire Straits in 1988.

A world record was also set with a 1983 Schecter guitar, which can be heard on the 1985 Dire Straits hit ‘Walk Of Life’ and which Knopfler subsequently played with his band on the massive ‘Brothers In Arms’ tour. The red electric guitar fetched more than a hundred times the estimated price. The highest bid was approximately 488,000 francs (415,800 pounds).

Not a world record, but a new edition of the “Gibson Les Paul Standard ’59” from 1983 also changed hands for a spectacular price. Knopfler played it on the recordings of ‘Money For Nothing’ and ‘Brothers In Arms’ and during the historic ‘Live Aid’ concert. The 12,000 to 17,000 francs expected by Christie’s were quickly achieved. Ultimately, the hammer fell for the electric guitar at around 694,000 francs (about £592,000).

The traditional auction house Christie’s auctioned a total of around 120 guitars and other instruments from the collection of Mark Knopfler on Wednesday. The auction, which started at noon, lasted into the evening hours. Knopfler, who will release his new studio album ‘One Deep River’ on April 12, announced that he would donate part of the proceeds to various charities. (sda/dpa)