The main attraction at the Los Angeles auction was the singer’s beloved “Lucille” black Gibson ES-345 guitar frequently used by King on tour in his later years. The guitar - accompanied by a hard leather case with “BB King” embroidered in gold - sold for $280000 (about R4.2million), well over its original estimate of $80000 to $100000.
Another highlight of the event was the sale of King’s collection of original 78rpm wax blues records that sold for an astronomical $51200 - more than a hundred times its original estimate of $500.
BB King died in 2015 at the age of 89.