A pair of blue suede shoes which were worn by the late music legend Elvis Presley, sold for £120,000 under the hammer recently.
The shoes were sold for the huge figure by auctioneers Henry Aldrige & Son in Devizes last week (June 28).
Elvis Presley wore these shoes for several interviews and public appearances during the 1950s, including his appearance on The Steve Allen Show, where he performed ‘Hound Dog’.
The music icon had originally purchased these shoes after performing Carl Perkins’ hit ‘Blue Suede Shoes’. He subsequently gave the shoes to a friend after he was drafted into the US Army in the 1950s.
“transcend popular culture”
Speaking about the Blue Suede Shoes, auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said that they are what “you think of immediately when you talk about Elvis Presley”, adding that they “transcend popular culture”.
Aldridge also commented: “When Elvis joined up for the American army, he had a get-together at Graceland. Elvis called some of these people upstairs and was giving away some of the clothes he didn’t think he’d need or want when he came back from the army. The gentleman concerned was Alan Fortas, Elvis’s branch manager and a friend of his”.
The shoes themselves have been on display at various museums, with Aldridge explaining that their authenticity was verified by singer Jimmy Velvet.
Velvet who ran a museum of Elvis memorabilia, was also a close friend of the late singer.
Back in May, Elvis’ granddaughter Riley Keough announced plans to contest the motion to put the music icon’s Graceland Estate in Memphis, up for public auction.
More on this from Nova here.
