A GUITAR played by Beatle George Harrison at the band’s final appearance at Liverpool’s famous Cavern Club in 1963 is to be sold by auction in Wiltshire next month.

The Australian-made Maton Mastersound MS-500 is expected to fetch in the region of £300,000 to £400,000.

Luke Hobbs, the Gardiner Houlgate auctioneer who will sell it in Corsham on September 12, said: “This guitar is something very special – a direct link to the early days of Beatlemania and those era-defining gigs at the Cavern Club. Just touching it makes your fingers tingle.

“We’re expecting interest from right around the world. It’s very rare for one of George Harrison’s guitars to come up for auction.

“In this case we have excellent provenance including letters and photographs. The guitar is also documented in books about the Beatles.”

It was played by Harrison during the summer of 1963 while his regular guitar was being repaired. The Beatles’ lead guitarist was so taken with it he continued to use it for more performances.

After Harrison returned the Maton guitar to the repair shop, it was bought by Roy Barber, the guitarist with Dave Berry And The Cruisers, who went on to have hits with Memphis, Tennessee and The Crying Game.The guitar remained in storage for several decades but after Barber’s death in 2000 it was exhibited at The Beatles Story museum in Liverpool and auctioned in New York in 2015 for £373,000 ($485,000).

The guitar is being sold by a private collector and will be available for public viewing on September 10 and 11. It is up for auction alongside hundreds of rock and roll memorabilia, including a pair of the icon’s customised Ray-Ban sunglasses which are expected to fetch more than £3,000.