On December 15, Bonhams will hold its Entertainment Memorabilia Auction, where one of the most anticipated lots will be the original cover artwork for Rolling Stones’ “Let It Bleed” album. The sleeve was considered to be one of the greatest of all times, and it is expected to fetch between £30,000 and £40,000 (approx. $46,600 – $$62,200).
The auction will take place in London, the same city where the album was recorded over several months. This December the album turns 42 (it was released on December 5, 1969), making sale that much more significant. The sculpture that is pictured on the cover was made by designer Robert Brownjohn, a friend of the band’s guitarist Keith Richards.
The famous album cover was also one only ten chosen by the Royal Mail to be part of the Classic Album Covers stamp collection, issued in 2010. The lot will also include five of these stamps, a US pressing of the album, two color positives and negatives of the final version of the cover (front and back), a photo of Mick and Keith checking the cover proofs, and a copy of “Keith Richards: Satisfaction” by Christopher Sandford.
