LONDON - Imagine that. A lock of John Lennon's hair sold for $48,000 Wednesday in an auction of Beatles' memorabilia collected by the band's hairdresser.

The hair - inside an autographed copy of Lennon's book "A Spaniard in the Works" - sold to an unnamed telephone bidder.

Gorringes auction house had estimated the hair would sell for $4,000 to $6,000.

Lennon gave the book and the lock of hair to Betty Glasow, the Fab Four's hairdresser during their heyday. He wrote in the book, "To Betty, Lots of Love and Hair, John Lennon xx."

"It is astonishing that there is still so much interest in the Beatles and the sale goes to prove that John Lennon is still an icon," said Francesca Collin, a spokeswoman for Gorringes.

"To have some of Lennon's hair along with a signed note from him really does give it fantastic provenance and authenticity," Collin said.

Glasow, who kept the Beatles' moptops trimmed on the set of their films "A Hard Day's Night" and "Help!" in the 1960s, decided to sell the items because she wanted fans to have them, said Nick Muston, a director of the auction house.

"She feels that rather than these things being stuck in a drawer with nobody enjoying them, real enthusiasts (could) get their hands on these things," Muston said.

Other items sold at the auction in Worthing included signed photographs of the band dedicated to Glasow, including one that George Harrison signed "George "Dandruff" Harrison." It sold for $13,000.