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Guitar (price) stiffly leaps

May 19, 2013

A guitar played by the Beatles John Lennon and George Harrison has sold for $408,000 (317,852 euros). The instrument had last sold a few years ago by the auction house Christie's for a little over $100,000.

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Images Darren Julien President & CEO of Julien s Auctions with a custom made prototype VOX guitar played by George Harrison and John Lennon during The Beatles 1967 Magical Mystery Tour, on display at The Stafford Hotel, st. James Place, and will be sold at auction by Julien s Auction s in New York, estimate value US$300,000, London, UK, May 9, 2013. Photo by: i-Images i-Images PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxHUNxONLY People Musik Auktion Gitarre Beatles xcb x0x 2013 quer premiumd 59620553 Date 09 05 2013 Copyright Imago I Images Darren Julien President & CEO of Julien S Auctions With a Custom Made Prototype Vox Guitar played by George Harrison and John Lennon during The Beatles 1967 Magical Mystery Tour ON Display AT The Stafford Hotel St James Place and will Be Sold AT Auction by Julien S Auction S in New York Estimate Value 000 London UK May 9 2013 Photo by I Images I Images PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxHUNxONLY Celebrities Music Auction Guitar Beatles x0x 2013 horizontal premiumd
Auktion Gitarre The BeatlesImage: imago stock&people

Manufactured by the VOX company and distinguished by two symmetrical flared shoulders on the upper body, the semihollow body sold for the equivalent of 318,000 euros to an anonymous US buyer who sent a surrogate to the Music Icons event in Manhattan to bid on his behalf. Julien's Auctions had estimated that the guitar, the centerpiece of Saturday's sale, would fetch between $200,000 and $300,000.

According to the auction house, Harrison played the instrument while practicing "I Am the Walrus" and Lennon used it in a video session for the song "Hello, Goodbye." Both songs featured on the Beatles' 1967 album "Magical Mystery Tour."

VOX custom-built the guitar for Lennon in 1966, according to the auction house. In 1967, Lennon gave the ax to Yanni "Magic Alex" Mardas, the electronics engineer for the band's Apple Records label.

Mark David Chapman, a deranged fan, murdered Lennon in 1980, and Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001. Bassist Paul McCartney and drummer Ringo Starr are the remaining Fab Two.

mkg/kms (Reuters, dpa)