Zach Bryan is the proud new owner of Jack Kerouac’s original On the Road manuscript after submitting the winning $12.1 million bid at auction this week.
Previously owned by Jim Irsay, the iconic 120-foot typed scroll was offered as part of a major Christie’s auction that also included David Gilmour’s “Black Strat” and Jerry Garcia’s “Tiger” guitar. Irsay, the late owner of the Indianapolis Colts, originally purchased the On the Road manuscript in 2001 for $2.43 million, which at the time set a record for a literary work sold at auction.
Bryan, a well-known admirer of Kerouac, had previously purchased the Saint Jean Baptiste Church in the author’s hometown of Lowell, Massachusetts, with plans to convert it into a museum.
