A portrait of John Lennon created by the ‘fifth Beatle’ before his tragic death could fetch thousands of pounds when it comes up for auction at Ewbank’s in Surrey.

Stuart Sutcliffe's haunting painting had hung in the Imagine singer's Surrey home until he ripped it up during a moment of frustration and gave it to a friend.

But the brooding abstract artwork could now fetch £5,000 when it goes under the hammer – after the remains were pieced back together.

Sutcliffe was best known as the original bass guitarist of the Beatles, with both he and Lennon credited with inventing the band's name.

But when he was performing with the then little-known group in Hamburg, Germany, in the early 1960s, he met photographer Astrid Kirchherr and had a brief relationship.

He then left the band in July 1961 and enrolled in the local Hamburg College of Art where he studied under Eduardo Paolozzi.

Sutcliffe died at the age of 21 in Germany in April 1962 after suffering a severe bleed on his brain.

The portrait identified as being by Stuart Sutcliffe of John Lennon. Release date - March 14, 2024. A portrait of John Lennon created by the ‘fifth Beatle’ before his tragic death could fetch thousands of pounds when it comes up for auction. The brooding painting of the Imagine singer by Stuart Sutcliffe had hung in Lennon’s Surrey home before he later ripped it up in a moment of frustration. But a family friend rescued the remains of the abstract picture and it could fetch £5,000 when it goes under the hammer after being pieced back together. Stuart Sutcliffe was best known as the original bass guitarist of the Beatles - with both he and Lennon credited with inventing the band's name. But when he was performing with the then little-known group in Hamburg, Germany, in the early 1960s, he met photographer Astrid Kirchherr and had a brief relationship. He then left the group in July 1961 and enrolled in the local Hamburg College of Art, where he studied under Eduardo Paolozzi. Sadly, Sutcliffe died at the age of 21 in Germany in April 1962 after suffering a severe bleed on his brain. Lennon had treasured the picture by his dearly departed friend, with a photo showing how it had hung on the wall behind his sofa in his home, in Weybridge, in 1967. And Ewbank's Auctions, which is selling the item, found the painting was an exact match for the one in the photo following analysis.
The portrait identified as being by Stuart Sutcliffe of John Lennon (Ewbank's Auctions / SWNS)

Lennon had kept the picture by his dearly departed friend – with a photo showing how it had hung on the wall behind his sofa in his home, in Weybridge, in 1967.

But the star had later gifted the picture to his pal Bernard Clark after he had stopped him from completely tearing it up during a frustrating moment.

Bernard had been director of photography for Cave Photographic Studios based in Surrey in the late 1960s, which provided photographic equipment to The Beatles.

He and his wife forged a particularly close relationship with Ringo Starr and were regular visitors to John and Cynthia Lennon’s Kenwood home.

The 41cm wide by 56cm tall image, which is mounted, framed and glazed, is estimated to make £3,000 to £5,000 at auction on May 30 at Ewbank's Auctions.

The Sgt Pepper album, a first pressing from 1967, from the Clark collection signed by all four Beatles - Estimate £3000-£5000. Release date - March 14, 2024. A portrait of John Lennon created by the ‘fifth Beatle’ before his tragic death could fetch thousands of pounds when it comes up for auction. The brooding painting of the Imagine singer by Stuart Sutcliffe had hung in Lennon’s Surrey home before he later ripped it up in a moment of frustration. But a family friend rescued the remains of the abstract picture and it could fetch £5,000 when it goes under the hammer after being pieced back together. Stuart Sutcliffe was best known as the original bass guitarist of the Beatles - with both he and Lennon credited with inventing the band's name. But when he was performing with the then little-known group in Hamburg, Germany, in the early 1960s, he met photographer Astrid Kirchherr and had a brief relationship. He then left the group in July 1961 and enrolled in the local Hamburg College of Art, where he studied under Eduardo Paolozzi. Sadly, Sutcliffe died at the age of 21 in Germany in April 1962 after suffering a severe bleed on his brain. Lennon had treasured the picture by his dearly departed friend, with a photo showing how it had hung on the wall behind his sofa in his home, in Weybridge, in 1967. And Ewbank's Auctions, which is selling the item, found the painting was an exact match for the one in the photo following analysis.
The Sgt Pepper album, a first pressing from 1967, from the Clark collection signed by all four Beatles, is estimated to sell for £3,000 to £5,000 (Ewbank's Auctions / SWNS)

A copy of The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band vinyl LP record, signed by all four Beatles, is also estimated to make £3,000 to £5,000 during the sale.

And a collection of promotional footage transferred to VHS cassette for songs off the Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Heart Club Band album is going up for sale.

This will be paired with a series of books including a first edition of The Penguin John, by John Lennon, which was also a gift to Clark from Lennon.

Together these are expected to fetch £80 to £120.

Senior partner Andrew Ewbank at the auction house said: “This is a unique set of circumstances behind an iconic image linked to an historic moment in the life the most important band in rock and pop history.

“Beatles memorabilia is a market all on its own, and items like these that have such a closely defined personal link with any member of the group, especially John or Paul, are of outstanding interest to fans.”