Beschreibung:

Freddie Mercury's stage-worn wrap-around top & pair of black satin flared trousers, 1974
hand decorated by Freddie Mercury, also worn on the cover of Queen II, 1974, & on Top Of The Pops, 1974, with a pair of black satin flared trousers
a dancer’s top of black wool with three-quarter length sleeves and long ties to wrap around the waist and tie at the side, the right shoulder and upper arm hand-sewn by Freddie with yellow diamante, the left front similarly decorated, unlabelled; and a pair of bespoke black satin flared trousers, fastening at the waist with two black buttons and concealed hook and eye fastening, the interior waistband with cream striped satin lining, unlabelled.
(qty 2)
This combination of wraparound top and satin flared trousers was a staple of Freddie’s stage wear from early 1972. In June 2023, Wendy Edmonds (née de Smet) confirmed the account of how she came to make costumes for Freddie that was published in Queen in Cornwall by Rupert White (2011). Wendy Edmonds created Freddie’s famous ‘Mercury Wing’ catsuits (see lots 44, 150 and 151), but prior to that Freddie asked her make dancer’s wrap-around tops for him: "I made him these wrap-around tops to wear on stage. He was very specific about what he wanted and he’d ask me to copy things. So he had these little women’s ballet tops, crossover things, and he’d give me the stretch velvet and say ‘Can you copy this?’"
Wendy has examined all the wrap-around tops included in this auction and has confirmed that she made the plain black velvet wrap-around top (lot 105) and recalled that Freddie gave her a plain black woollen one to copy, he recalls that Freddie gave her a plain black woollen top to copy it from (either this example or lot 108), and that he hand-decorated these tops himself: "Freddie knew how to sew. He was pretty good, so for example, he’d….sew on sequins himself”. 
This wrap-around top was worn by Freddie for Queen’s photoshoot with Mick Rock in 1974; the striking image, inspired by Marlene Dietrich in ‘Shanghai Express’, was used for the cover of Queen’s second album. The top was also worn with similar trousers to those included here for Queen’s second appearance on the BBC TV chart show Top Of The Pops broadcast on 14 March 1974, when they performed ‘Seven Seas Of Rhye’.
Photographs by Mick Rock from this period show Freddie wearing this top and other similar dancer’s wrap-around tops on stage and for publicity on numerous occasions. This particular top can be seen in photographs of Queen performing at Imperial College, 1973, where they appeared twice that year on 26 October and 2 November, and at the Rainbow Theatre, London, 31 March, 1974, in an image captured by Mick Rock.
This was the most extensively used of Freddie's surviving wrap-around tops (see also lots 118, 141-143), and he appears to have stopped wearing this style of top as stage wear after 1975 when he started wearing his famous catsuits.
LITERATURERupert White, Queen In Cornwall, 2nd Edition, Athena Publications, 2022, pp.276-277.Mick Rock and Queen, Killer Queen, The Official Limited Edition, Genesis Publications, 2003, pp.42 & 43, p.51 (outtake photo showing the diamanté detail), p.68 (Freddie in these or identical trousers)
SPECIAL NOTICENo right to reproduce or commercially exploit the copyright or other intellectual propertyor image rights in any lot is included with the sale of the lot (including but not limited tosong lyrics, sketches, drawings and garment designs). Queen Productions Limited, QueenMusic Limited and other rights holders reserve all their rights. No right to exhibit in public or reproduce this lot is included with the sale of this lotwithout the prior written consent of Queen Productions Limited, who shall act in good faithto consider any such requests.