An original passport picture of Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis is thought to have been the last picture taken before his death.
The striking picture, which was taken just days before his untimely death in 1980 and signed by the iconic musician, has now been sold for thousands of pounds at auction.
The photo was taken at the Old Woolworths on Mill Street in his home town of Macclesfield and given to then road manager Terry Mason ahead of the Salford band's planned US tour, Cheshire Live reports.
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Mr Mason believes the photo is the last one taken of Ian as no one has made claim to a later one. The passport picture has now gone under the hammer and sold for £7,500.
The signed shot went for auction on last week at the Music Memorabilia & Vinyl Showcase Auction. On the Omega Auctions website, the former Joy Division manager spoke about events leading up to the picture.
Terry Mason said: "Taken on the morning of Thursday, May 15 1980, at the Photo Me booth in Woolworths Macclesfield, in preparation for the US Tour. The band, Rob and the crew all needed to provide two passport photos, signed on the reverse complete with any middle initials.
"I was due to travel to the US Embassy in Grosvenor Square the next day and I already had everyone else, Ian’s were the last to be collected. I drove over with Barney and Rob Gretton."
"Ian was in fine form and overly generous, we really thought that he had got his head around his domestic situation, and was making plans for the future. He gave Barney some albums, his skinny Levis and his winkle picker boots, he gave me his Ideal for Living cover – for some reason I had missed out on a cover, despite having been there folding them, Ian was offering me his #2 Sordide Sentimental, but Rob stopped him.
"And then the major reason for the journey, Ian handed me the two duly signed passport photos for the US Embassy, and gave me the remaining copy, saying ‘you keep this you never know when you might need it’, with Rob joking, ‘it’s your tip for going to the embassy’.
"Three photos, shouldn’t there be a fourth? There was, but obviously it was the first flash that always caught you off guard and Ian didn’t want anyone see that one, and Ian had already binned it, I was given three.
"The next day I caught the early train down to London, queued at the Embassy and waited for the passports to be stamped, before the Embassy closed its gates. I collected the passports, rang Rob to tell him we had Visas (around that time there had been a spate of UK bands missing the start of their North American tours due to Visa delays) and then got the train back to Manchester.
"In the 41 years since the photo, no one has made any claim to a later photo of Ian and so with a 99.999% probability this is the last photo of Ian."
Ian Curtis' tragic death on May 18, 1980 saw him take his place among rock and roll icons lost in their youth. Joy Division are often described as one of the most influential bands of all time.
Since his death on May 18, 1980, several places in the town of Macclesfield have become a shrine for fans of the band. While there are many tributes scattered around in the form of plaques, murals and artwork, the legacy of Joy Division lives on.
Most recently, renowned street artist 'Akse' finished the Ian Curtis mural last month (March 24). The striking piece of artwork adorns a building on Mill Street, just across from the bus station.
