Bargain Hunt: Bob Marley’s dreadlock expected to fetch £25,000 at auction
In fitting with the memory of his album Natty Dread, a luscious lock belonging to Bob Marley is set to fetch £25,000 when it goes up for auction.
The 1.5-inch dreadlock, which was acquired by a fan after the reggae legend’s performance on Top of the Pops in 1978, is being described as “impossibly rare” as it is the first time a real piece of hair from Marley has come up for sale in 20 years.
According to JC Auctions, who are responsible for the bidding process, the dreadlock came from a fan named Andrea who went to the recording of the iconic BBC music show with her friend on June 22nd, 1978, when Marley was performing ‘Satisfy My Soul’ with the Wailers.
A description from Andrea on the bidding lot page says: “Back in the day you were permitted to get on stage at Top of the Pops with the bands. After Bob Marley had finished singing, myself and a friend went up onto the platform where he was performing.”
She added: “He was chuckling away and I asked if I could take off a piece of his hair. He just kept nodding and chuckling and appeared amused by it so I twisted a piece of his dreadlock off. And he of course gave me his autograph as well. I’ve kept it in my autograph album ever since.”
The dreadlock is accompanied by an autograph from Marley, written in blue ballpoint pen, which says: “To Andrea, Love Bob Marley”.
The other acts featured on the same episode of Top of the Pops included a range of musical icons such as Black Sabbath, Showaddywaddy, Heatwave, Thin Lizzy, and Legs and Co.
Although the Marley dreadlock is set to go under the hammer for a seismic price, it is not the only notable bidding war that has taken place this month. A massive auction of over 400 iconic musical items began on March 3rd, with the profits set to top $1 billion.
The most expensive item in the sale was the Fender Mustang guitar that Kurt Cobain played in the music video for Nirvana’s defining hit ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’, which was expected to fetch between $2.5 and $5 million in total.
Bids can be made on Marley’s dreadlock until April 9th, with the maximum bid at this stage being £5,000.
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