Ultimate antiques collection raises £7m

The 1,000-piece collection amassed by American-born musician Stanley Seeger also included Al Capone’s cocktail shaker and Orson Welles’ working copy of the Citizen Kane script.

The collector, who lived in Sandsend in North Yorkshire for many years with his partner, Christopher Crone, died in June 2011.

Al Capone’s silver shaker, engraved “To A ‘REGULAR GUY’ from THE BOYS 1932”, was used by Mr Seeger to serve guests Bloody Marys. It sold for £50,000, five times the asking price.

The Citizen Kane script also raced above its estimate of £15,000 and achieved £98,500.

Dated April 30 to May 9, 1940, the script, with the film’s original title “American”, is twice inscribed on the cover “Mr Welles’ working copy”.

Welles kept few mementoes of his films and only one other of his Citizen Kane scripts is recorded.

Admiral Lord Nelson’s Bachelor Teapot from 1799 fetched £56,250 at the auction.

A claret jug from the Titanic sold for £40,000, 20 times its estimate.

Sir Winston’s armchair, which was made around 1880, made £27,500 - way above its initial estimate of between £3,000 and £5,000.

Melanie Clore, chair of Sotheby’s Europe, which worked with Stanley Seeger many times and sold the items, said: “Only once in a generation does a collector with such diverse, interesting and far-reaching taste as Stanley Seeger appear.

“Every single object has a story to tell and is enhanced by its association with one of the greatest collectors of his generation.”

David Macdonald, who researched each of the 1,000 objects, added: “Stanley Seeger’s extraordinary eye and keen sense of fun pervades this collection, and so it has been a joy to see so many people come to our rooms to engage in, enjoy - and in many instances take home with them - part of the magical world that was Stanley’s and Christopher’s.”