A Buddha from a Bond film and globe from Harry Potter were among a host of film props to go under the auctioneer’s hammer on Wednesday, beginning a three-day sale at Sotheby’s that is expected to raise more than £1 million.
Among the 1,500 lots up for grabs are items that have been used in Gladiator, Titanic and a host of James Bond films. All belong to a vast collection from a London film prop shop that has supplied gizmos and gadgets to some of the most famous movies of the last 50 years.
Some of the objects have even moved from film to film. A giant white Buddha which made its first appearance in Carry On Up The Khyber resurfaced a few years later in The Man With The Golden Gun and then went on to turn up in Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade and Tomb Raider. And a small gilded Buddha that was first used in the fifth Bond outing You Only Live Twice popped again over 30 years later once again opposite Sean Connery in 1999’s Entrapment.
For shop owner Christine Paul, the most precious piece on sale is a century-old clock in a full-size coffin which comes complete with a real skeleton, that made an appearance in the 1975 cult flick The Rocky Horror Picture Show. “There’s a fascinating story about that,” said Christine, who has run the Ken Paul Prop Shop in north London since her father’s death in 1989.
“The skeleton is rumoured to be the remains of the young Italian lover and secretary of the Countess of Rosslyn,” she continued. “After his death she couldn’t bear to be separated from him, so she immortalised him in the clock and took him everywhere with her. Much better than being buried, don’t you think?”
Following Christine’s decision to shut up shop, Sotherby’s undertook the auction, which is scheduled to continue until March 15.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
