{"id":499023,"date":"2026-02-25T17:48:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T17:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/499023\/"},"modified":"2026-02-25T17:48:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T17:48:12","slug":"a-rare-print-of-the-original-photo-from-led-zeppelins-fourth-album-sold-for-16000","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/499023\/","title":{"rendered":"A rare print of the original photo from Led Zeppelin\u2019s fourth album sold for \u00a316,000"},"content":{"rendered":"

An original nineteenth century print of the photograph of a thatcher used on the cover of Led Zeppelin\u2019s fourth album sold at auction in Sussex for \u00a316,000 on February 25.<\/p>\n

The print, which had been given an estimate of between \u00a31,500 and \u00a32,000, is the largest known original print of the photograph used on Led Zeppelin\u2019s iconic album cover.<\/p>\n

Bidding on the item increased to more than 10 times its lower estimate following a bidding war between a telephone bidder in the UK and an online bidder in the US, with the UK bidder eventually winning the item.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am delighted to have sold such a significant piece of music history and got such a great result for the seller,\u201d Leo Denham, managing director of Sussex auction house Denhams, told LedZepNews. \u201cThe new UK-based buyer is very pleased with his purchase where it will take pride of place in his collection. It goes to show the continuing levels of interest there are for such examples of album art.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a very interesting lot,\u201d Denham said as he prepared to sell the print. \u201cThis is a rare and historically important Victorian photograph. It\u2019s of exceptional significance as the source material for the Led Zeppelin IV album.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRobert Plant saw it in an antiques shop, a colour print, near Jimmy Page\u2019s house,\u201d he continued. \u201cThat was the first time it was ever seen. Then Brian Edwards, the Wiltshire Museum curator, found it at auction in 2023. That was the first example that has ever been seen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis version is the largest that is known and is the highest resolution. So there is no higher resolution of this portrait out there. So it\u2019s exceptionally rare. There are lots of bids, lots of interest,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

Ahead of the sale, Denham told BBC News<\/a> that \u201cthere has been a lot of interest from collectors in America and around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fine art dealer and consultant Tim Williams, who discovered the print, told LedZepNews that the \u00a316,000 hammer price was an \u201cextraordinary result\u201d. <\/p>\n

\u201cI watched it online and the final bidding seemed to be between a phone bidder vs internet. Clearly, they both really wanted it, and I\u2019m delighted to have been a footnote in the social history of that remarkable photograph,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Williams discovered the valuable item in a vintage and interior items auction after Denham sent him a draft copy of the catalogue for the upcoming sale showing the items that were due to be sold.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went through the draft of the catalogue and I immediately spotted that photograph,\u201d Williams told LedZepNews earlier this month<\/a>. \u201cI said \u2018Leo, this is the image from the cover of Led Zeppelin IV, an album I bought when I was 13.\u2019 And being a guitarist as well, Led Zeppelin are one of my favorite bands of all time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"The gatefold cover of Led Zeppelin\u2019s fourth album<\/p>\n

Williams began researching the photograph, realising he had discovered an incredibly rare example of one of the best-known images in rock music. \u201cI thought \u2018Oh my god, we found the second version of this original photograph,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The print found by Williams is the largest print to surface of the thatcher image so far, measuring 60.8 x 44.4 cm compared to the dimensions of an original print found in 2023 by historian Brian Edwards of 16.6 x 11.3 cm.<\/p>\n

The seller of the newly discovered print was unaware of its significance until Williams recognised the image. It was listed for sale by the widow of an antique dealer who has been selling her husband\u2019s remaining stock.<\/p>\n

Rediscovering the original photo<\/p>\n

Williams\u2019 discovery of the print comes after two more original copies of the image came to light following the 2023 discovery of the original copy by Edwards<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"The 1892 photograph album discovered at auction in 2023 that contained an original print of the thatcher photograph (Ernest Howard Farmer\/Wiltshire Museum)<\/p>\n

\u201cI flipped it upright and lo and behold my jaw hit the floor,\u201d Edwards told LedZepNews in 2023, recalling the moment he found the original print in a photo album. \u201cThere was something immediately recognisable about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edwards was able to identify the photographer behind the image as Ernest Howard Farmer and also found that the thatcher in the image was likely Lot Long.<\/p>\n

Since then, Edwards and Williams have told LedZepNews that two other prints have come forwards. This means a total of four surviving prints of the photo are now known to exist: The original copy found by Edwards in 2023, the larger print found by Williams and an additional two prints.<\/p>\n

The mysterious label<\/p>\n

After Denhams realised the newly discovered photograph of the thatcher might be especially valuable, it took a closer look at the back of its frame and found a partial gallery label affixed to it with handwritten text. The label appears to read \u201cthatcher (Devonshire)\u201d and likely says \u201coriginal photograph\u201d beneath it.<\/p>\n

\"\"The partial label affixed to the back of the print of the thatcher discovered at Denhams auction house in Sussex (Denhams)<\/p>\n

The label and the number of surviving prints found suggest that the photograph of the thatcher may have been a relatively popular image.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow we know there are four of them and there must have been a fifth one that Robert Plant found in the antique shop,\u201d Williams said, \u201cwhy was this image almost widely disseminated in the nineteenth century?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis image must have completely fallen out of cultural significance until it was picked up by Robert Plant and put on the front of Led Zeppelin IV, which is quite an extraordinary story really,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

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