The Remains of a 1964 Strat Destroyed by The Who's Pete Townshend Are Going Up for Auction

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The remains of a 1964 Sonic Blue Fender Stratocaster, smashed to pieces by The Who's Pete Townshend during a 1967 concert, are going up for auction next Sunday, April 15, in Dallas.

According to Heritage Auctions, which is hosting the auction, Townshend smashed the guitar up during The Who's show at the Long Island Arena in Commack, NY on December 1, 1967.

The guitar comes with a handwritten, 2-page letter from the original owner—who reportedly caught the pieces of the guitar at the show that night—the ticket stub from the show and 2 aluminum engraved plaques.

According to Antiques Trade Gazette, the guitar—or what's left of it—carries a pre-auction estimate of at least $20,000. Other guitars that Townshend destroyed during Who performances have been sold for as much as $75,000, according to Heritage.

For more info on the auction, head on over to entertainment.ha.com.

Jackson Maxwell
Jackson Maxwell

Jackson is an Associate Editor at GuitarWorld.com. He’s been writing and editing stories about new gear, technique and guitar-driven music both old and new since 2014, and has also written extensively on the same topics for Guitar Player. Elsewhere, his album reviews and essays have appeared in Louder and Unrecorded. Though open to music of all kinds, his greatest love has always been indie, and everything that falls under its massive umbrella. To that end, you can find him on Twitter crowing about whatever great new guitar band you need to drop everything to hear right now.