Nearly £400k paid at auction for Hamburg-era Beatles memorabilia

£383,823 has been paid at auction for a collection of Beatles memorabilia from their Hamburg years.

The collection, which sold for double its valuation, included several letters from band members to the late German photographer Astrid Kirchherr which were written in the early 1960s.

The band lived and performed in the city in the 1960s before finding mainstream success.

The collection was sold by the Bonhams auction house on Wednesday.

Two letters from George Harrison sold for £60,250 and £56,250.

Sir Paul McCartney’s letter to Kirchherr sold for £15,250.

A letter from John Lennon sold for £50,250, while two ink sketches by the late musician depicting a creature and an abstract female form sold for £9,563.

Lennon’s work permits for his visits to Hamburg also sold for £137,750.

Photographs of the Beatles arriving at Hamburg airport in June 1962 were sold for £12,750.

Katherine Schofield, director of Bonhams’ entertainment memorabilia department, said: “The Beatles legacy is as strong as ever and today’s exceptional result proved that.

Katherine Schofield, director of Bonhams’ entertainment memorabilia department, said:

“The Beatles legacy is as strong as ever and today’s exceptional result proved that.

“The time they spent in Hamburg shaped them as both musicians and men, so to offer such a personal insight into this period of growth and the relationship they had with Astrid Kirchherr was an honour.

“Naturally, we are delighted that the collection sold so well and that the sale as a whole achieved a great result.”