New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art will display Ringo Starr’s gold-plated snare drum in a special exhibition honoring the ex-Beatle’s 70th birthday.
The museum said Tuesday the drum will be shown from July 7 — Starr’s birthday — through December.
The instrument was presented to the drummer by the Ludwig Drum Company in Chicago during the Beatles’ 1964 U.S. tour. It was given to him in appreciation for popularizing the Ludwig name. Starr played on a Ludwig oyster black pearl drum set during the Fab Fours’ 1964 appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Starr also kicks off a second season of the PBS series “Live From the Artists Den” with a performance taped at the Met. It will be shown the week of his birthday.