Photo Gallery: The World's Most Valuable Guitars ... and What They'd Cost

They're as iconic as the master musicians who brandished them into worldwide recognition.

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Since 1980, Guitar World has been the ultimate resource for guitarists. Whether you want to learn the techniques employed by your guitar heroes, read about their latest projects or simply need to know which guitar is the right one to buy, Guitar World is the place to look.

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Maya Neelakantan holding the jeff hanneman signature model in a restaurant

“She said this model was made shortly after Jeff Hanneman passed away and this was a very, very limited edition”: America's Got Talent sensation Maya Neelakantan gifted a rare prototype of the late Slayer guitarist's signature model by his wife

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“I walked through the ‘Nothing To Declare’ lane, though it was in an embarrassment of a guitar case at that point”: The remarkable story behind Rory Gallagher’s 1968 Coral 3S19 Electric Sitar

“Most musicians can relate to being at the grocery store, humming riffs into their phone and looking like a weirdo in aisle six”: With Thick Riff Thursdays, producer Nick Broomhall is teaching guitarists how to nail the sound in their heads

“I think of the guitar as a punctuation to the vocal. It's about, ‘How can I be an exclamation point?’” Cage The Elephant guitarist Nick Bokrath explains his unique guitar grammar – and the innocence of pedal steel

Neural DSP Quad Cortex vs Nano Cortex: Which should you choose?

“The Rolling Stones gig is the culmination of my childhood dreams – I figure now that I've played with Miles, Sting, Herbie Hancock, Peter Gabriel, and Madonna, I've pretty much covered it”: Darryl Jones looks back at the path that led him to the very top

“We went to Billy Corgan’s place in Chicago. He said, ‘When you think you’ve got a chorus, just write another one’”: Bones UK’s Carmen Vandenberg on going hard to make Soft – and the Jeff Beck pedal that won’t leave her ’board

“I can’t stop being bewildered by all these people who say, ‘That guy sucks!’ I’ve got news for you – you don’t get to where you’re at if you suck! Okay?” Kirk Hammett on why bad solos are dying – and dealing with armchair guitar critics

“It creates the illusion of speed and intricacy”: Inside the evolution of selective picking – one of modern guitar’s most expressive techniques

“I’m almost getting scared about my love affair with this guitar – I’m worried what I would do if something happened to it”: Trey Anastasio on the creation of his “perfect” custom Languedoc guitars – and the genius who made them (who only sees mistakes)

“I use a lot of chords with open strings. The guys in the Heartbreakers used to laugh at me, saying, ‘You’re doing the bagpipes again!’” Mike Campbell on his unorthodox guitar style – and how Tom Petty saved his definitive Breakdown lick

“We put out Rock in a Hard Place and went out on the road, which was the definition of the word ‘fiasco.’ Too many shows ended early due to the excessive use of chemicals”: Tom Hamilton on Aerosmith’s past challenges – and why they still have a future