If fashion is a statement, Kurt Cobain’s fuzzy olive-green cardigan is a statement of nostalgia. The rock icon’s green sweater, last-washed in the 90s, was sold for $334,000 at the “Icons & Idols: Rock ‘N’ Roll” auction in New York on Saturday.
The price tag broke the auction record and became the most expensive sweater that Julien’s Auctions ever auctioned. According to CNN, the final sale amount exceeds expectations which were originally set between $200,000 and $300,000.
For many fans, the cardigan is a stretching symbol of Cobain’s legacy. The rock legend wore it on Nirvana’s “MTV Unplugged” live performance at Sony Music Studios in New York in 1993. The live performance was labeled as one of the most iconic acts of Nirvana. Five months after the performance, Cobain committed suicide on April 5, 1994.
According to Julien’s Auction, the vintage sweater, made by the Manhattan Industries, “is a blend of acrylic, mohair and Lycra with five-button closure (one button absent) with two exterior pockets, a burn hole and discoloration near left pocket and discoloration on right pocket.”
In order to maintain the original look, the cardigan has remained unwashed since 1994. “It’s very important that we don’t wash it,” Darren Julien of Julien’s Auctions revealed, “The stains are still there. There’s even cigarettes burns that you can see on the sweater.”
A close friend of the Cobain family, Jackie Farry, received the sweater from Cobain’s widow, Courtney Love, in 1994. Farry has been battling cancer for the last ten years and sold the sweater to pay for mounting medical bills. The sweater was accompanied by a handwritten letter from Farry. Check out a video of “All Apologies” from the Unplugged performance below.
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