Elton John Sells Items at Auction, Rakes in $8 Million

Elton John's swapping out that yellow brick road for another made of 24-karat gold ... 'cause a collection he curated for Christie's sold at auction -- and they fetched a bundle.

The legendary singer-songwriter partnered with the popular auction company to sell a ton of iconic items, and Elton made out like a bandit on the auction's first night -- with all 49 lots selling for a total of around $8 million.

Among the items sold ... Elton's silver leather platform boots circa 1971 for $94,500, prescription sunglasses for $22,680 and even his beloved 1990 Bentley Continental which brought home $441,000.

A series of luxury wristwatches sold for prices in the six figures ... and Elton even parted with "Flower Thrower Triptych" -- a painting by enigmatic artist Banksy -- to the tune of just over $1.9 million. The auction house says Elton got the Banksy piece "directly from the artist" ... which presumably means EJ has met the elusive man (or woman) himself.

BTW, Wednesday was only the first night of The Collection of Sir Elton John: Goodbye Peachtree Road sale ... more items are set to be sold off in person Thursday and Friday.

Also ... deep-pocketed purchasers who'd rather buy from the comfort of their own home will have about a week to pick up more one-of-a-kind collectibles.