Notorious B.I.G. plastic crown sells for $600K at Sotheby's hip-hop auction
The signed crown was a plastic prop from a party shop that was worn by the rapper Notorious B.I.G. in the iconic 1997 "King of New York" photograph, three days before his death.
The crown worn by Notorious B.I.G. when photographed as the King of New York is displayed during a press preview at Sotheby's for their Inaugural HIP HOP Auction on September 10, 2020 in New York City.
The plastic gold-coloured crown that American rapper Notorious B.I.G. wore on the last photoshoot before his death has fetched $600,000 at the first-ever hip hop auction held by an international house, Sotheby's said on Wednesday.
The auction was a celebration of the history and cultural impact hip-hop has had on art and culture from the late 1970s through mid-1990s, and up to the present, Sotheby's said.
After highlighting sneakers and handbags in recent years, Sotheby's in New York dedicated its September auction to hip-hop culture, featuring some 120 lots that included boomboxes, photos of Snoop Dogg and Louis Vuitton luggage.
The auction house has said it was the first auction staged by an international house anywhere devoted entirely to hip-hop.
Rapper Notorious B.I.G. is seen in this 1997 photo titled 'Notorious B.I.G. as the K.O.N.Y' by Barron Claiborne.
Iconic photoshoot
The signed crown, which was just a plastic prop from a party shop, worn by the rapper in the 1997 "King of New York" photograph was offered on sale for the first time. It was expected to fetch $200,000 to $300,000 at the September 15 auction, Sotheby's had said earlier.
The New York rapper, also known as Biggie Smalls, was shot dead in Los Angeles at the age of 24 three days after the photoshoot as part of a feud between east and west coast rappers that also took the life of Tupac Shakur, 25, in 1996. Both crimes remain unsolved.
The signed plastic crown worn by rapper Notorious B.I.G. for the photoshoot titled 'Notorious B.I.G as the K.O.N.Y' by Barron Claiborne is pictured in this handout photo supplied by Sotheby's, ahead of a September 15 auction dedicated entirely to hip-hop culture in New York.
Unique artefacts
In the auction, a series of 22 love letters written by a 16-year-old Shakur to his high school sweetheart Kathy Loy between 1987-1988, were sold for $75,600.
The sale comprised of unique artefacts, contemporary art, photography, vintage and modern fashion, historic and newly designed jewellery and luxury items, rare ephemera including flyers and posters.
This follows the 270-year-old auction house's recent forays into collectable sneakers, space memorabilia, pop music lyrics and designer handbags.
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