Sotheby’s hip-hop auction also raises $126,000 for a 12-inch copy of Rammellzee track Beat Bop, with artwork by Jean-Michel Basquiat
A plastic crown costing $6 worn by the Notorious BIG has sold for $594,750 (£461,000) at Sotheby’s first ever auction of hip-hop memorabilia.
The crown was used by photographer Barron Claiborne in portraits made three days before the rapper’s murder in a drive-by
shooting, and is signed by the Notorious BIG. It features “one point broken off, some general light wear and abrasions”, according to the listing. The sale price was double the $200,000-300,000 estimate.