Ever wanted to own a lock of Leonard Cohen’s hair? Now’s your chance, thanks to an upcoming auction featuring dozens of items once belonging to the iconic singer-songwriter.
Julien’s Auction House has announced an upcoming sale of 164 items culled from the collections of the late musician’s romantic partner Anjani Thomas and longtime friend Aviva Layton, among others.
Along with such mementos as lyric sheets, photos, personal letters, artwork, a couple of hats, and more, perhaps the most interesting artifact is a lock of Cohen’s hair, housed in a locket.
Thomas told Rolling Stone of the lock of hair, “We were cutting his hair one day, and he had just given me a locket for my birthday. And I thought it was a traditional thing to put a snippet of hair in a locket. It’s a very olden-times custom.”
Another standout item is Cohen’s Greek Fisherman’s “Magic Writing” cap, of which Layton recalled, “Leonard was wearing his cap, and [my husband] Irving said, ‘I write poetry, but I’d like to write songs and make tons of money like you.’ And Leonard said, ‘I’ve got this cap, it’s a magic cap. I’ve written all my early songs wearing this cap. I’m going to give it to you, and you’ll be able to write songs and make a lot of money too.’ Unfortunately, it only seemed to work for Leonard.”
The auction is set to take place on February 28th in Los Angeles and online, and interested parties can register to bid at this location. The lock of hair is expected to fetch between $400 and $600, while the cap is estimated to bring in $4,000 to $6,000.
Leonard Cohen passed away in 2016 at the age of 82. His best-known songs include “Hallelujah” (which has been covered countless times — much to the chagrin of St. Vincent), as well as “Suzanne” and “Everybody Knows,” among others.
A promotional video for the “Celebrating Leonard Cohen” auction can be viewed below, along with images of the lock of hair and the “Magic Writing” cap.