Here is the quick history on Jimmy Page’s famous “Dragon” Fender Telecaster that he used with Led Zeppelin and the actual guitar used to play the solo on “Stairway To Heaven.”

The 1958 Blond Fender Telecaster was given to Page by Jeff Beck when they were both members of The Yardbirds. Here’s Beck playing what would become the “Dragon” guitar with a homemade black pick guard.

And here is Page playing the future “Dragon” Tele on stage with The Yardbirds.

In late 1967, Page stripped the paint off of this 1958 Blond Fender Telecaster and hand painted a green, red and orange psychadelic dragon on the front of the body. He also replaced the pickguard with a pickguard made of clear acrylic.

About the pickguard Page said,

“Yes. There was work done on it but only afterwards. I painted it; everyone painted their guitars in those days. And I had reflective plastic sheeting underneath the pick guard that gives rainbow colors.”

In a 1998 Guitar World interview, Jimmy Page said the following about the fate of the “Dragon” Telecaster.

“I still have it (referring to the Dragon Tele), but it’s a tragic story. I went on tour with the ’59 Les Paul that I bought from Joe Walsh, and when I got back, a friend of mine had kindly painted over my paint job. He said, ‘Ive got a present for you.’ He thought he had done me a real favor. As you can guess, I wasn’t real happy about that. His paint job totally screwed up the sound and the wiring, so only the neck pickup worked. I salvaged the neck and put it on my brown Tele string bender that I used in the Firm. As for the body… it will never be seen again! (laughs)”

Here is a photo Page playing the “Dragon” Tele neck with The Firm.

Page also had a white Fender Stratocaster that was recently returned to him from John Paul Jones…