Beatles memorabilia expected to fetch more than Ksh.875.7B at auction

A ticket stub from the Beatles’ first concert in the United States and a suit once worn by John Lennon are among more than 100 pieces of memorabilia that are going up for auction in New Jersey.

Other items up for grabs at the Gotta Have Rock and Roll auction house include a signed “With the Beatles” album, a pair of recording consoles used by the band at Abbey Road studios and a set of signed self-caricatures.

In all, there are 119 items of memorabilia that are expected to fetch more than $6 million (approx. Ksh.875.7 billion) if they sell for around the upper reaches of their estimates.

The ticket stub from the 1964 Washington Coliseum show is expected to sell for $4,000-$6,000 (Ksh.583,000 -Ksh.875,700).

The self-caricatures—drawn on a set wall for “The Ed Sullivan Show,” where the Beatles were making their first ever US television appearance—carry an estimate of $750,000-$1 million (Ksh.109.5M - Ksh.145.9M), and Lennon’s black evening suit $500,000-$750,000 (Ksh.72.9M - Ksh.145.9M).

Another intriguing piece of memorabilia is a handwritten greeting card signed by George Harrison, which includes a sketch of Adolf Hitler.

The message reads “To Steve,” and “Happy birthday, my friend” in German, and is signed in the names Adolf Schickengruber, George, Olivia and Dhani.

A book published in 1989 alleged that Harrison owned Nazi memorabilia and had pictures of Hitler in his home.

Harrison always denied this and even sued a magazine that reprinted the relevant passage from the book, according to the auction house.

The auction, which began on August 30, runs until September 23. Sales of Beatles memorabilia always attract a huge amount of interest.

In April 2020, a handwritten copy of “Hey Jude,” penned by Paul McCartney himself, sold for almost six times its estimated value at $910,000 (kSH.132.8M).

Over the years, fans have also invested in more unusual items, including one of Lennon’s teeth. In 2011, a Canadian dentist paid $31,200 (Ksh.4.5M) for a discolored molar that once belonged to the singer.