Proving that nothing is priceless, not even a marriage proposal, The Guardian reports that the lots at an upcoming auction for Prince memorabilia will include his first wife’s wedding ring and accoutrements as well as some unreleased tracks. Nate D. Sanders Auctions will oversee the proceedings on March 17, but the complete catalog of items that are up for bid is already online. You can vie for the chance to buy one of several ruffled shirts, tunics, and jackets worn on stage by Prince. Other items of interest include a pair of rhinestone-covered handcuffs, gold ear cuffs (again, worn by Prince), and even a chenille scarf he wore on Muppets Tonight.
But the most notable items are far more rare—and personal. There’s the 1959 vintage Gibson L-series 6-string acoustic guitar Prince used on early demos in the 1970s. And for at least $20,000 (though probably much more), you can own a cassette tape with recordings of six early Prince songs, including “Just As Long As We’re Together,” “My Love Is Forever,” and “Jelly Jam.” That tape was originally given to Dez Dickerson, former guitarist for The Revolution, who somehow managed not to record over this “piece of musical history” at any point in the last 40 years or so (cassette tapes were at a premium, once).
The most expensive lot on the list comes from Mayte García, who was once part of The New Power Generation—first as a dancer, then as a bilingual vocalist. She was also married to Prince during his unpronounceable/love symbol years, which must have made for an interesting if not poetic exchanging of vows (“Do you, Love Symbol, take this woman…?”). Their divorce was finalized in 2000; 16 years later, she’s put their wedding clothes and china up for auction. From her personal collection, García has also offered up her engagement ring and the five handwritten notes Prince used to take her “on a romantic journey” to find the ring. The notes have been blurred intentionally for the auction photos, but their purchase doesn’t come with the rights to reproduce, manufacture, or otherwise distribute them, which means the auction’s winner won’t be able to feign a co-writing credit for a previously unreleased Prince track titled “The Five-Heart Proposal.”