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Largest private collection of John Lennon poems and artwork sells for $3 million at Sotheby's

The collection sold for nearly 300 percent more than auctioneers expected.

By Matt Bradwell
Former Beatle John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono listen in on the Watergate hearings on Capitol Hill. Mark David Chapman cc/FILE PHOTO UPI
Former Beatle John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono listen in on the Watergate hearings on Capitol Hill. Mark David Chapman cc/FILE PHOTO UPI | License Photo

NEW YORK, June 4 (UPI) -- Sketches and poems written by former Beatle John Lennon sold for a combined $2.9 million at Sotheby's auction house on Tuesday.

Sold in 89 separate lots, the works included previously published material from Lennon's books In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works, both published in the mid-1960s.

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The items, owned by the books' publisher Tom Maschler, are the largest private collection of Lennon's artwork made available for public sale. The final total for all the lots was $2.9 million, nearly three times the $1 million Sotheby's estimated they were worth.

The three most expensive items sold were a hand-written nine-page Sherlock Holmes parody called The Singularge Experience of Miss Anne Duffield for $209,000, a hand-written nonsense poem called The Fat Budgie for $143,000 and an ink drawing of a four-eyed guitar player for $109,375. All 89 lots were sold to anonymous buyers.

I have a little budgie He is my very pal I take him walks in Britain I hope I always shall.

I call my budgie Jeffrey My grandads name's the same I call him after grandad Who had a feathered brain.

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Some people don't like budgies The little yellow brats They eat them up for breakfast Or give them to their cats.

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