An anonymous buyer has purchased Roy Rogers' famous OM-45 Deluxe Martin guitar for $460,000.
The 1930-built Martin is considered one of the rarest and most coveted acoustic guitars in the world. The Martin was auctioned by The Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum in Branson, Missouri.
It was originally purchased, used, for just $30 at a California pawn shop in 1933 by a young and unknown musician, Leonard Franklin Slye - who went on to adopt the persona of Roy Rogers.
The guitar was the first OM-45 Deluxe model guitar Martin produced in 1930 - #1 of only 15 in total - but Slye was unlikely to have been aware of the model's significance. The OM-45 Deluxe became synonymous with Rogers' stage and film persona, before he retired it in the mid-1940s.
In 2006, Martin honoured Roy Rogers with a replica signature edition of his famous guitar.
“You would get suspended for even having a guitar”: Brian May says it was “illegal” to have a guitar at his school – but he and his friends played during lunch hour anyway
“Gibson was able to put the universe on it… the planet Mercury is here, and that is a little nod to a friend of mine”: Inspired by the stars and co-designed by the Queen guitarist, Gibson unveils exquisite Brian May SJ-200 12-String
