Gene Autry’s Guitar in Global Dispute

A rare Martin guitar, likely stolen from country singer Gene Autry in 1932, was discovered in a Swedish farmhouse and is now the focus of a dispute between Autry’s widow and the woman who inherited it. The case matters because its ownership is contested across Swedish and US legal systems, and the instrument may be worth far more than the amount offered for it.

The guitar is one of only 50 Martin OM-45s made in the early 1930s. A Stockholm repairer uncovered Autry’s name beneath black paint and found a serial number; Martin records and Autry’s 1932 tax return support the link and report a stolen guitar. Autry’s widow offered $20,000, but Sandra Jakobsson declined, citing its sentimental value and advice that it could be worth six figures.