John Lennon's 'Imagine' piano sold at auction

LONDON -The piano on which John Lennon composed ''Imagine,'' his wistful plea for peace and harmony, was sold for $2.1 million Tuesday at a London auction.

An anonymous telephone bidder purchased the upright during an online auction at the Hard Rock Cafe, auctioneers Fleetwood Owen said. Organizers had estimated its value at $2.2 million.

The piano, a Steinway Model Z upright, was built in Hamburg, Germany, in 1970 and purchased by Lennon later that year. Surviving film footage shows the former Beatle performing ''Imagine'' for Yoko Ono on the instrument at his home in Berkshire, southern England, in 1971.

The piano was bought by a private British collector in 1992. It had been on loan to the Beatles Story Museum in Liverpool since February.

Museum curator Shelagh Johnston said she hoped the piano could remain in Lennon's hometown. ''We want to keep as much of our history here as possible before it is too late,'' she said.

Recorded in 1971, ''Imagine'' topped the charts when it was rereleased after Lennon was shot to death in 1980 by obsessed fan Mark Chapman.

The piano was the centerpiece of a sale of Beatles memorabilia organized by Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac and auctioneer Ted Owen.

A Ferrari owned by Lennon and restored by the late Dodi Fayed sold for $158,000. Other auctioned items included a pair of Lennon's trademark wire-rimmed spectacles, which fetched $8,600; a Hammond C3 organ from Lennon's studio, which sold for $58,000; and a tin of Beatles talcum powder, which drew a top bid of $290.