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Rare Beatles Photos Sell Big at Auction

Unpublished images were shot by teen in 1964

July 21, 2011 5:30 PM ET
Beatles pictures photos auction
Paul McCartney in Washington, D.C., February 11, 1964.
Photograph by Mike Mitchell courtesy of CHRISTIE'S IMAGES LTD. 2011

A collection of previously unpublished photographs of the Beatles' early concerts in the United States shot by a teenager in 1964 has taken in over $360,000 in an auction at Christie's in New York. The set of black-and-white prints, broken up into lots of about 50 each, sold much higher than original estimates, which fell between $2,000 and $3,000. According to the auction house, the photographs had been estimated modestly because the photographer, Mike Mitchell, is an unknown.

Photos: Never-Before-Seen Beatles Pictures

Mitchell shot the set at the Fab Four's concert at the Washington Coliseum on February 11, 1964, only two days after their famous debut on the Ed Sullivan Show. The lots also included pictures taken at a pre-concert press conference and another gig at the Baltimore Civic Center a few months later.

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