Manuscript of 'Auld Lang Syne' goes on sale – sort of

Published on Tuesday 11 August 2009 22:40

THE original manuscript of Auld Lang Syne has gone on display ahead of an auction of historical treasures.

The Robert Burns work may fetch as much as 50,000 when it goes under the hammer in Bonhams' Scottish sale later this month.

But the buyer will not be able to take it home. Instead they will be "patron" of the 18th-century manuscript, which will be kept in the new Robert Burns Birthplace Museum in Ayrshire.

A Bible owned by Burns in the later stages of his life also went on show.

The Bible is preserved in a velvet-lined blue Moroccan box with "Burns Bible" in gilt lettering, and may fetch 2,000 in the auction.

A number of items relating to Queen Victoria will also be sold. These include a woollen bag she made using purple and gold thread, and a Royal Stewart silk shawl she once wore.

A specially commissioned ceramic Wemyss pig will also be auctioned, with all proceeds given to Marie Curie Cancer Care.

The three-day sale starts on 18 August at Bonhams in Edinburgh.