John Lennon signed violin goes up for auction

Violin surfaced following the release of a new Beatles song in November, which was signed by the couple in Mallorca in 1975…

 A violin autographed by Beatles star John Lennon is at auction on Catawiki, the leading online marketplace for special objects.

Hot on the heels of the release of The Beatles’ new song, which brings John Lennon back to life through audio cleaning technology, musician and violin owner Jose Eugenio Sanz Sampedro, has decided to sell his piece of musical history on the marketplace.

Jose met Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono in Mallorca in 1975 while he was playing at a hotel where they were dining. He recalls the night the famous couple signed the instrument;

“At that time, in a luxury hotel, you could not enter the dining room without a tie. John was wearing a shirt, no tie, and trainers. The maitre told that he couldn’t enter without a tie, so John went back to the room and returned with his tie knotted around his head!”

Once seated, Jose approached their table and asked if he could play “Yesterday” for them on the violin. Once he finished playing, Jose asked the couple to sign the instrument, and almost half a century later, the violin is at auction for the very first time.

Items signed by both Lennon and Yoko are hard to come across. Beatles-signed memorabilia, however, is more common but still known for fetching high prices at auction. For example, a 1962 original card signed by the four Beatles sold on Catawiki in 2019 for €3,700 (£3,175).

The violin is online for auction bids on Catawiki from now until the 17th of December.