Eddie Van Halen Guitar Expected to Fetch $2-3 Million at Auction

Another guitar previously owned by Eddie Van Halen — and later, Mick Mars — is expected to fetch big bucks when it goes up for auction this year.

The Kramer guitar in question is modeled after Van Halen’s signature “Frankenstein” guitar, sporting a similar red, black and white paint job. The titular Van Halen guitarist played the ax throughout 1982 and 1983 on the band’s Hide Your Sheep Tour in support of Diver Down. The guitar could be seen onstage during concerts in Philadelphia; Caracas, Venezuela; Sao Paulo, Brazil; and Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Van Halen’s guitar will lead Sotheby’s upcoming “Rock & Pop” auction on Oct. 24 during the company’s Grails Week (Oct. 21-28). The sale will also include memorabilia from Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles and more. The auction house estimates the guitar will fetch between $2 million and $3 million.

You can see pictures of the guitar below.

More Details About Eddie Van Halen’s 1982 Kramer Guitar

Eddie Van Halen’s personal touches can be seen all over his soon-to-be-auctioned Kramer guitar. The late virtuoso inscribed the body to his ’80s guitar technician Rudy Leiren, writing: “Rude – Its Been a Great Ten Years – Lets Do Another Ten. Eddie Van Halen.”

READ MORE: Van Halen Albums Ranked Worst to Best

The guitar has also passed through the hands of other noteworthy players — namely, Motley Crue guitarist Mick Mars, who purchased the instrument from Leiren and played it extensively while recording the band’s 1989 album Dr. Feelgood. The lot includes a factory Kramer case and letter of authenticity from Mars, who writes: “… Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Also it’s a great piece of history.”

This isn’t the first Van Halen guitar to command an eye-watering sum on the auction block. In 2023, the custom Kramer guitar he played in the band’s “Hot for Teacher” video sold for a whopping $3.9 million.