John Lennon’s Lost ‘Help!’ Guitar Sets Beatles Auction Record After $2.9 Million Sale

An iconic acoustic guitar used by John Lennon during the 1965 sessions for the Beatles’ Help! album set a new record on Wednesday (May 29) when it sold for $2.9 million at a Julien’s auction. The auction at the Times Square Hard Rock Café where the 1964 Framus Hootenanny acoustic guitar went under the gavel came after the instrument went missing for nearly half a century.

Julien’s said the sale made it the most expensive Beatles guitar to ever sell at auction. “We are absolutely thrilled and honored to have set a new world record with the sale of John Lennon’s lost hootenanny guitar,” said Julien’s CEO David Goodman in a statement. “This guitar is not only a piece of music history but a symbol of John Lennon’s enduring legacy. Today symbolizes what we do best at Julien’s – creating opportunities for people to reconnect with the cultural touchstones that have shaped the moments that matter most throughout their lives. Today’s unprecedented sale is a testament to the timeless appeal and reverence of The Beatles’ music and John Lennon.”

The Framus 12-string — which was also used by late Beatles guitarist/singer George Harrison during the sessions for 1965’s Rubber Soul and was heard and seen on the Help! album and movie — was purchase via a phone bid from an undisclosed buyer. The guitar went missing for nearly 50 years after Lennon gave it to Peter & Gordon’s Gordon Waller, who he and Paul McCartney had been writing songs for. Waller, in turn, gave it to his manager, who stashed it in an attic of his home, according to Julien’s.

Julien co-founder Darren Julien said in a video that a British man found the guitar and its case in his parent’s attic when they were moving out and promptly reached out to the auction house, who authenticated it with a Beatles expert. The guitar was initially valued at an estimated $600,000-$800,000 before selling to the anonymous buyer for $2,857,500.

In 2015, another Lennon acoustic guitar sold at auction for a then-record $2.4 million.