Gandhi items raise £128,000 at auction

An incredible collection of Mahatma Gandhi artefacts has been auctioned off in south Shropshire for £128,000 with the great man's iconic spectacles fetching more than £40,000.

The sale at Ludlow Racecourse yesterday featured 27 items associated with Gandhi and attracted interest from across the world.

Ghandi's family had branded aspects of the sale 'morbid' after it was revealed a piece of blood splattered earth on which Gandhi was standing when assassinated in 1948 would go under the hammer.

Auctioneers Mullock's said three items had been snapped up by the same buyer via a proxy bidder.

Kevin Bland, financial controller for Mullock's, added every lot associated with Gandhi had been sold.

He said: "The spectacles which sold for £40,900, Gandhi's wooden charka which sold for £31,300 and the casket containing the blood stained soil which sold for £12,040 were all bought by the same person.

"The bids came in over the phone and the buyer used a proxy bidder. I'm not sure where the bids were coming in from and we can't reveal their identity.

"Another item which attracted particular interest was Gandhi's prayer book which sold for £12,640. Bids for these items came in from six different sources over the phone. Some online bids were also made."

The lots were given a pre-auction guide price of £80,000. In total, with commission and VAT added, the final amount of cash sucked in by the auction hit £128,000.

Gandhi was the leader of the Indian nationalist movement against British rule and is seen by many as the father of his country.