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These pieces of Anthony Bourdain’s estate are destined for parts unknown.
Beginning Wednesday, more than 200 of the late celebrity chef’s most prized keepsakes are being sold in an online auction that’s open to the public, with most of the proceeds benefiting the Anthony Bourdain Legacy Scholarship at the Culinary Institute of America — his alma mater.
The rest of the proceeds will go to his estate, primarily to his daughter, the auction site noted.
The Emmy-winning host of CNN’s “Parts Unknown” and “Kitchen Confidential” died by suicide in France last year at the age of 61, just days after the suicide of fashion designer Kate Spade. (If you need help or know someone else at risk, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.)
The Smithsonian dubbed him “the original rock star” of the culinary world, and he was credited with getting his audience to think differently about food and travel. “He was one for the first people to truly see food as a way to understand the world,” his longtime friend Matt Goulding previously told MarketWatch.
Related: The most meaningful advice Anthony Bourdain gave his longtime friend Matt Goulding
Now a year after his death, anyone can bid on his collection of artwork, books and accessories until the end of the month — as well as quirky finds like a note from Billy Joel (starting at $50) or his Hermès scarfs (starting at $40). Some of the standout items up for bid include: a 19th-century chrome duck press (estimated value between $700 and $1,000) that he acquired in Paris; his white chef’s jacket ($350); and his Peter Lovig Nielsen teak flip top writing desk ($600).
iGavel Auctions Bourdain’s prized knife, a chef’s jacket and chrome duck press are up for grabs.
But his custom Bob Kramer knife is the crown jewel in the collection, and is expected to go for between $4,000 and $6,000. It was crafted from 800 layers of pounded steel and an iron meteorite from Campo de Cielo in South America, and took two years from ordering it to getting it in his hand. The auction site notes that Bourdain told his assistant and co-author Laurie Woolever when he ordered it that, “I might have to go back to working brunch shifts to afford it.”
Related: A look at Anthony Bourdain’s final ‘Parts Unknown’ season
Woolever told CBS New York that all of the lots up for grabs were meaningful pieces to Bourdain. ”Anything that sort of made it to the home collection was something that had a real, personal significance to him, so when I look around this room, I really see so much of him,” she said. “I see the things that he loved.”
The auction will run online from Oct. 9-30.
