Pattie Boyd to auction love letters from Eric Clapton, George Harrison
English model and photographer Pattie Boyd’s personal collection is up for auction, including letters from her two ex-husband musicians Eric Clapton and George Harrison of The Beatles.
Boyd, who’s turning 80 on March 17, is regarded by many as "rock’s most legendary muse,” according to British auction house Christie’s, inspiring “some of the greatest love songs of all time.”
Christie's said the collection “opens a window on her private world through the personal letters, ephemera, and mementos she has treasured as well as offering glimpses behind the lens from her parallel life as a photographer.”
Items include photos of Boyd and Harrison’s early days as a couple, as well as Harrison’s handwritten lyrics, psychedelic drawings, and letters.
Boyd, then 19, met Harrison, 21, in 1964 on the set of the Beatles film A Hard Day’s Night.
She’d inspire Harrison to write songs like I Need You, For You Blue, and Something.
Boyd and Harrison got married in 1966, and Boyd put at the center of Beatlemania. She was also an important influence during the group’s shift to spirituality and psychedelics.
But Boyd left Harrison in 1974 following his several affairs.
Boyd is also auctioning off Clapton’s love letters while she was still married to Harrison, as well as the original cover artwork for the 1970 album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs of Clapton’s band Derek and The Dominos. “Layla” is Clapton’s nickname for her, which also served as the title of one of his hit songs.
Clapton, a close friend of Harrison, in 1970 wrote to Boyd, addressing her as “Dearest L.”
“I am writing this note to you, with the main purpose of ascertaining your feelings toward a subject well known to both of us,” he said. “What I wish to ask you is if you still love your husband, or if you have another lover?”
“All these questions are very impertinent I know, but if there is still a feeling in your heart for me… you must let me know!” Clapton wrote, while also asking Boyd not to telephone but write a letter as it’s “much safer.”
He signed it as “E,” who Boyd initially thought was from a “weird fan.” She even showed it to Harrison.
Another letter from Clapton was one using a torn-out page from John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men. His letter reads, “If you don’t want me, please break the spell that binds me. To cage a wild animal is a sin, to tame him is divine.”
Clapton continued to pursue her until her breakup with Harrison. Boyd eventually married Clapton in 1979, but would split in 1987 due to “substance abuse and infidelities.”
Other items in the Pattie Boyd collection include clothing, jewelry, her outputs as a photographer, drawings, and trinkets from albums and tours.
The auction will take place from March 8 to 21.