Tuesday would have been guitar legend Jimi Hendrix’s 70th birthday. And as we here in Boston paid tribute to the icon through tweets and the like, over in London they were auctioning off his favorite guitar, which sold for a hefty sum.

The black Fender Stratocaster – which Jimi famously played at the Monterey International Pop Festival in 1967 – sold at auction for £205,000 pounds, according to the Daily Mail. With fees and everything else included that equates to approximately $380,000 US dollars.

The guitar was so near and dear to Jimi that he couldn’t bring himself to burn it. As you are probably aware, Hendrix closed out his set at the ’67 Festival by dousing a guitar in lighter fluid and setting it aflame. Right before the ending to the 9-song set, Jimi switched guitars from the black Fender Strat to a lesser model, that was eventually torched during the finale of “Wild Thing.”

The guitar belonged to James “Tappy” Wright, 69, of Newcastle, Florida. Wright acquired the guitar in his earlier years serving as a manager for the Anim Limited record company. His decision to sell the item was based largely on the need to bolster his retirement funds.

Andrew Celani — WZLX.com

Jimi Hendrix on ZLX:

• Happy Birthday Jimi [VIDEO]
• Jimi Hendrix: Boston Fans Tribute the Legend on Twitter
• Former Jimi Hendrix Engineer Previews Unreleased Track “Somewhere”