The late Beatle purchased the vehicle in 1971
A classic car owned by John Lennon is going up for auction.
The late Beatles star’s 1956 Austin Princess will be included in a forthcoming sale held by RM Sotheby’s, the world’s largest auction house for investment-quality motors.
Lennon purchased the vehicle in August 1971 and went on to use it the following year in a promotional film for his album ‘Imagine’, alongside wife Yoko Ono.
The car’s seats were replaced with five aeroplane seats, which are still in the car today.
The buyer will also receive the original vehicle registration and title document, complete with Lennon’s signature from the original purchase.
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The vintage car was donated to the Austin Rock & Roll Car Museum in Texas in 2008 by previous owner Milton Verret, and it has now been put forward for the auction to raise money for charity.
The RM Sotheby’s auction will take place at London’s Battersea Evolution on September 7, reports the Irish Examiner.
The auction house estimates the car will fetch a minimum price of £190,000 and a maximum of around £265,000.
Last month, a shirt with Lennon’s blood stains on it sold at auction for £31,000, after it was initially expected to only reach £7,000.
Belonging to concierge Jay Hastings, the white shirt was worn as part of his uniform when he worked at The Dakota building in New York.
Hastings was on duty on December 8, 1980, when John Lennon was shot by Mark Chapman as he and wife Yoko Ono entered the porch of The Dakota to go to their home. Hastings then covered the Beatle with his suit jacket, with some of Lennon’s blood staining into the shirt on its chest and sleeves.
According to reports, Hastings had planned to keep the shirt. He recently decided to take it to auction, with an expected buy of £7,000. Garry Shrum, of Heritage Auctions, said: “Jay Hastings kept this shirt all these years and never really spoke about it. It has just been sitting in a drawer for years and now he is getting older he felt it was time to sell it.
“There are remnants of blood on the shirt. Some people might be appalled but it’s a piece of history. We did ask ourselves ‘is this too dark or wrong to sell’ but I don’t think it is. He is not exploiting John Lennon’s death. He is telling the story of how he tried to help John Lennon in the last few minutes of his life.”
