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MONTREAL — From pages inked with poems to a locket containing a lock of hair, memorabilia belonging to the late Canadian poet and singer songwriter Leonard was auctioned on Friday, raking in thousands of dollars.
The Montreal icon died at the age of 82 in 2016 and Julien’s Auctions billed the event held in Los Angeles as the largest auction of Cohen’s private effects, with close to 170 pieces.
A 76-page notebook filled with poems as well as the lyrics to the songs “Treaty” and “It’s Torn” sold for US$120,650 (C$174,194), the biggest sale of the day, the auction house says.
It says a first edition copy of “Let Us Compare Mythologies,” Cohen’s first published volume of poetry sold for the equivalent of $15,015 and handwritten pages of some poems he published in 1968 sold for $22,920 and $18,770 respectively.
Other items dated from the time the songwriter spent in Greece were sold as well, including a key to Cohen’s home on the island Hydra, which sold for $28,154, while a black Greek fisherman’s cap sold for $11,261.
Jewelry including a locket containing Cohen’s hair sold for $7,334 and a gold bracelet sold for $6,569 while two mezuzahs — a religious item of the Jewish faith — sold for $11,261.