Alex Lifeson’s treasured Gibson ES-355 sells at auction for $384,000

Alex Lifeson’s legendary Gibson “Whitey” ES-355 has been sold for over $300,000, after the Rush icon put a number of his most beloved electric and acoustic guitars up for auction.

The sale – which was hosted by Julien’s Auctions – took place today (May 20), with Lifeson’s treasured semi-hollow electric guitar selling for a cool $384,000 after receiving 13 bids. It was one of the stand-out six-strings on the auction list, having played an integral part in the guitar legend’s decades-spanning career with Rush.

It had made its way onto the majority of Rush's studio albums, and was used live on countless occasions. The tremolo-equipped ES model also exceeded its original $300,000 sale estimation by a considerable margin.

Owing to his connection with the white-finished guitar, Lifeson recently described to Guitar Magazine the emotional farewell he had with it, recalling, “I sat there with that case in between my legs and, maybe it sounds a little corny, but I was talking to it.

“I was reminiscing about gigs that we did together,” he continued, “and kissing the bubble wrap.”

The Property from the Archives of Alex Lifeson auction also included a number of other high-profile sales. Joining the ES-355 was Lifeson’s 1976 Gibson Dove acoustic, which sold for $128,000.

Lifeson’s Dove was an equally important guitar in his arsenal, and was used to pen multiple songs from Rush’s 1977 record A Farewell to Kings, including the classic hit, Closer to the Heart. 

Elsewhere, in a hard-fought auction battle, a stage-played Gibson EDS-1275 smashed its $40,000 estimation and sold for $89,600 after being the subject of 20 bids, while a 1991 PRS CE 24 – which was one Lifeson’s main touring guitars in the 1990s – sold for an eye-watering $112,500.

Another six-figure six-string was Lifeson's custom-built Hentor Sportscaster, which was snapped up for $187,500.

For more info on all of Lifeson's guitars that were sold, visit Julien’s Auctions.