Anthony Bourdain's keepsakes to be auctioned in benefit of legacy scholarship
Celebrity chef and television personality Anthony Bourdain left his mark around the world throughout his career. And now, a year after his death, his legacy of giving back to the world continues as his personal mementos will be auctioned off to benefit student scholarships.
From October 9 to 30, nearly 200 lots of Bourdain's keepsakes will be available for auction online. Some of his most valued possessions, such as artwork, books and accessories, will be available for bidding, including his writing desk and a chrome duck press.
A significant portion of the auction proceeds will go to the Anthony Bourdain Legacy Scholarship at Bourdain's alma mater, the Culinary Institute of America, to help students study abroad or complete a global cuisine and culture international program. Remaining proceeds will benefit his estate.
Bourdain died in June 2018 by suicide at the age of 61 while he was in France to film an episode of his CNN show "Parts Unknown."
All of the items in the auction collection were meaningful pieces to Bourdain, his longtime assistant, Laurie Woolever, told CBS New York.
"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."
In an Instagram post, the auction host iGavel Auctions said the items "speak to the quiet elegance favored" by Bourdain.
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A custom Bob Kramer steel and meteorite knife is expected to be the highest-valued item, Woolever said. The auction website predicts the item will sell for anywhere between $4,000 and $6,000.
"Tony was really enamored of this process of doing something that took a long time," she said. "It wasn't mass manufactured. It was done by hand, with a sense of care and a sense of pride in the workmanship."