Rare images of John Lennon will be auctioned in Liverpool next October

A collection of 26 negatives containing rare never before seen photographs of John Lennon from February 1970 have been uncovered at The Beatles Story.

The negatives, which depict intimate portraits of the former Beatle, were bought to a Memorabilia Day held at The Beatles Story on 25 October, an event where members of the public were being offered free valuations from leading celebrity memorabilia experts Julien’s Auctions.

Darren Julien, President/CEO of Julien’s Auctions estimated that the collection could sell for over £10,000 at auction. He said, “It’s not often when you find images of John Lennon that have never before been seen by the public. These 26 images/negatives of John Lennon are a rare find.”

The owner of the negatives, who wishes to remain anonymous, told experts that the collection had been stored away in the family’s junk draw for around 34 years, and were presumed to have no value.

Many other items were discovered on the day, including a Beatles Christmas Show programme from 1963 signed by all four Beatles, valued at £8,000 and a signed postcard, valued at £5,000.

These join the letter found at last year’s event, written by John Lennon and addressed to The Queen, the document explains the singer’s reasons for returning his MBE and was valued by Julien’s at around £60,000.

The negatives, the John Lennon letter and many of the other items are to be consigned into an auction taking place at The Beatles Story next year, in October 2018. This will be the first Beatles auction to take place at the award-winning Liverpool attraction and will see around 100 Beatlesand music-related items go under the hammer.

The collection of negatives will go onto temporary display within The Beatles Story’s main exhibition from 9 November 2017, for the public to view and enjoy before the auction.