Led Zeppelin guitar could sell for £50k at auction

A guitar once belonging to Jimmy Page could sell for £50,000 when it is sold by a Surrey family at auction

A guitar given away by Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page more than 50 years ago could sell for £50,000 when it is put up for auction by a Surrey family in September.

The 1957 Gretsch Chet Atkins 6120 electric guitar, which was the prize in a competition run by New Musical Express (NME) magazine, was held by Page like a cricket bat while posing in cricket whites on its cover.

The guitar, owned by the family of Phil O'Donoghue, from Chessington, is being sold with a photo of Page giving the guitar away to the winner of the competition, Charles Reid.

Auctioneer Luke Hobbs, who is selling the guitar, said it could exceed its valuation, adding: "The sky is the limit."

Mr Reid was quoted as saying he couldn't understand why Page would give away "such a terrific guitar as this."

He added: "It's the kind of instrument that every guitar player dreams of owning but can never really afford."

In an interview for the magazine, Page said he bought the guitar in Nashville, USA, for £200 in 1972.

Competition entrants had to match six guitars with the famous guitarists who owned them.

The correct entry selected as the winner was from Mr Reid, of Hornsey, north London.

He kept the guitar until September 1990 when he sold it to Mr O'Donoghue for £2,000.

Mr O'Donoghue, a guitarist with the 1970s rock band Wild Angels, kept the instrument until his death earlier this year.

Auctioneer Luke Hobbs said: "It's no exaggeration to say that Jimmy Page is a legendary guitarist and rock star.

"The family are understandably quite excited to find it how much it is worth. They grew up around it but its full provenance only came to light after Mr O'Donoghue passed away."

It is expected to fetch between £30,000 and £50,000 when auctioned at Gardiner Houlgate in Corsham, Wiltshire, on September 9.