John Lennon Gibson guitar sells for $2.4 million at auction

A mystery buyer with money to burn just gained a piece of music history. Juliens Auctions announced Saturday that the acoustic Gibson guitar stolen from John Lennon in the ’60s was sold for $2.4 million to an undisclosed recipient.

Lennon and fellow Beatles member George Harrison each purchased a J-160E Gibson acoustic guitar in 1962. Lennon would use his instrument to write a number of the band’s hit songs, including “She Loves You,” “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” and “From Me To You.”

The guitar was stolen after a concert in December 1963 and would be lost for 50 years. In a press release from the auction house, John McCaw of San Diego recalled how he had purchased an instrument that would soon be revealed to be this same J-160E. After making the connection through a 2012 magazine cover story titled the “George Harrison Collection,” he reached out to an expert who was able to match the serial numbers.

See photos of the guitar below.

Also sold during the auction was a Beatles drum head sold for $2.1 million. As originally announced by Julien Auctions, a percentage of the proceeds will go to the Spirit Foundation, a non-profit founded by Lennon and Yoko Ono.