Mahatma Gandhi's last will and
testament and a pair of his iconic sandals have been sold at auction
along with 50 items of memorabilia.
The two-page document, signed by the Indian independence leader in his Gujarati signature, had a guide price of between £30,000 and £40,000 but sold for £55,000.
The great man's size eight sandals - which he wore in the 1920s after being given them by a friend - sold for £19,000, £9,000 more than their asking price.
Other lots up for sale included a shawl, hand-woven by thread that Gandhi spun himself, and a rice bowl said to come from the house in India where Gandhi lived from 1917 to 1934.
But a sample of blood purportedly from the father of the Indian nation didn't draw high enough bids and failed to sell.
The item, described as a bit of Gandhi's blood on two glass microscope slides, was said to be provided by the leader when he was recovering from an operation for appendicitis in 1924.
There were also three of Gandhi’s delicately carved miniature figures depicting the wise monkeys; speak no evil, hear no evil, see no evil.
Gandhi gave many of the items to a close friend in 1924 when he was living at Palm Bun at Juhu in Maharashtra, India. The were passed down the friend's family over the years who then decided to sell the collection.
The memorabilia was offered by British auction house Mullock's in Ludlow, Shropshire.
Auction expert Richard Westwood-Brookes said today's bidding for the blood didn't meet the £10,000 reserve price.
He said about 50 other items took in £287,000 and the auction house was 'very pleased' with the result.
The two-page document, signed by the Indian independence leader in his Gujarati signature, had a guide price of between £30,000 and £40,000 but sold for £55,000.
The great man's size eight sandals - which he wore in the 1920s after being given them by a friend - sold for £19,000, £9,000 more than their asking price.
Other lots up for sale included a shawl, hand-woven by thread that Gandhi spun himself, and a rice bowl said to come from the house in India where Gandhi lived from 1917 to 1934.
But a sample of blood purportedly from the father of the Indian nation didn't draw high enough bids and failed to sell.
The item, described as a bit of Gandhi's blood on two glass microscope slides, was said to be provided by the leader when he was recovering from an operation for appendicitis in 1924.
There were also three of Gandhi’s delicately carved miniature figures depicting the wise monkeys; speak no evil, hear no evil, see no evil.
Gandhi gave many of the items to a close friend in 1924 when he was living at Palm Bun at Juhu in Maharashtra, India. The were passed down the friend's family over the years who then decided to sell the collection.
The memorabilia was offered by British auction house Mullock's in Ludlow, Shropshire.
Auction expert Richard Westwood-Brookes said today's bidding for the blood didn't meet the £10,000 reserve price.
He said about 50 other items took in £287,000 and the auction house was 'very pleased' with the result.
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