Charlie Watts’ full-size Bayeux Tapestry replica and collection of first edition books including The Great Gatsby go up for auction - two years after Rolling Stones legend's death
It wasn’t just drumming that gave Charlie Watts satisfaction.
The Rolling Stones rocker was an avid collector of literature, with his extensive collection set to go under the hammer in a landmark sale.
First edition copies of classic novels including F Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby and Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles will feature in a two-part auction with Christie’s, two years after his death.
Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel is expected to fetch £200,000 to £300,000. It features an inscription for MGM screenwriter Harold Goldman, which reads: ‘For Harold Goldman, the original “Gatsby” of this story, with thanks for letting me reveal these secrets of his past’.
Other items include a proof copy of Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited as well as rare editions of novels by James Joyce, PG Wodehouse and Agatha Christie, whose novel The Thirteen Problems has an estimate of £40,000 to £60,000.
![Art lover: The late Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts was an avid collector of literature, with his extensive collection set to go under the hammer in a landmark sale](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050989-12283197-image-m-39_1689003632265.jpg)
Art lover: The late Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts was an avid collector of literature, with his extensive collection set to go under the hammer in a landmark sale
![Stunning: This full-size Victorian replica of the Bayeaux Tapestry could fetch as much as £12,000 when it goes under the hammer at Christie's auction](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73049847-12283197-image-a-2_1689002217904.jpg)
Stunning: This full-size Victorian replica of the Bayeaux Tapestry could fetch as much as £12,000 when it goes under the hammer at Christie's auction
![Sought after: Other notable items from the late Charlie Watts' private collection include this first edition copy of F.Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel The Great Gatsby](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050135-12283197-Sought_after_Other_notable_items_from_the_late_Charlie_Watts_pri-a-36_1689003198726.jpg)
![Sought after: Other notable items from the late Charlie Watts' private collection include this first edition copy of F.Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel The Great Gatsby](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050133-12283197-image-a-37_1689003198751.jpg)
Sought after: Other notable items from the late Charlie Watts' private collection include this first edition copy of F.Scott Fitzgerald's 1925 novel The Great Gatsby
![Valuable: Fitzgerald’s novel is expected to fetch £200,000 to £300,000. It features an inscription for MGM screenwriter Harold Goldman, which reads: ‘For Harold Goldman, the original “Gatsby” of this story'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050155-12283197-image-a-17_1689002848916.jpg)
Valuable: Fitzgerald’s novel is expected to fetch £200,000 to £300,000. It features an inscription for MGM screenwriter Harold Goldman, which reads: ‘For Harold Goldman, the original “Gatsby” of this story'
Charlie Watts: Gentleman, Collector, Rolling Stone, is also comprised of jazz memorabilia, including two scores by Irving Berlin – Songs from Top Hat and Songs from Follow the Fleet, inscribed to Ginger Rogers, and two inscribed piano scores by cornetist Leon ‘Bix’ Beiderbecke.
Rare acetate recordings and a George Gershwin signed printed score of the opera Porgy and Bess, which could fetch up to £15,000, are also listed.
Part one will take place in London on September 28, while part two will run online from September 15 to 29.
Paul Sexton, who wrote Watts’ biography, Charlie's Good Tonight, said the late musician ‘took great pleasure in owning these things’.
‘He valued his time at home and he would read on the road, so literature was a very important part of his make-up,’ he told the BBC.
‘I don't think he acquired them because he knew they would become valuable, he just took a huge satisfaction in owning these great works and tracking down, with the help of experts, original first editions.’
In a statement, his former bandmates Sir Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood described Watts as a ‘quintessential English gentleman’ who had been interested in literature and jazz since ‘boyhood’.
‘Charlie was the heartbeat of the Rolling Stones for nearly sixty years, he was totally unique and devoted to jazz and literature from boyhood,’ they said.
![Lovely: The replica tapestry is one of numerous items from Charlie Watts' personal collection to go on sale](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73049845-12283197-image-a-3_1689002235152.jpg)
Lovely: The replica tapestry is one of numerous items from Charlie Watts' personal collection to go on sale
![All yours: First editions of Love Among The Chickens by PG Wodehouse...](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050161-12283197-image-a-8_1689002501414.jpg)
![... and Agatha Christie's The Thirteen Problems, which has an estimate of has an estimate of £40,000 to £60,000, are also included](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050143-12283197-image-a-9_1689002501427.jpg)
All yours: First editions of Love Among The Chickens by PG Wodehouse and Agatha Christie's The Thirteen Problems, has an estimate of £40,000 to £60,000, are also included
![Hitting all the right notes: This piece of sheet music from Porgy and Bess is signed by George Gershwin and could fetch up to £15,000](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050129-12283197-image-a-10_1689002585163.jpg)
Hitting all the right notes: This piece of sheet music from Porgy and Bess is signed by George Gershwin and could fetch up to £15,000
![Classic literature: First edition copies of Agatha Christie's Murder At The Vicarage...](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050121-12283197-image-a-15_1689002704448.jpg)
![... and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound Of The Baskervilles could be yours for the right price](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050139-12283197-image-m-14_1689002699059.jpg)
Classic literature: First edition copies of Agatha Christie's Murder At The Vicarage and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound Of The Baskervilles could be yours for the right price
![Avid collector: Charlie Watts: Gentleman, Collector, Rolling Stone, is also comprised of jazz memorabilia](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050123-12283197-image-a-18_1689002883599.jpg)
Avid collector: Charlie Watts: Gentleman, Collector, Rolling Stone, is also comprised of jazz memorabilia
‘He was the quintessential English gentleman and his absence is a great loss for us all. We miss him hugely.’
Benedict Winter, Specialist, Private & Iconic Collections and Mark Wiltshire, Specialist, Books and Manuscripts at Christie’s said: ‘Charlie Watts holds a unique position within music history and Christie's is proud to pay tribute to his extraordinary achievements and multifaceted legacy.
'We invite the public to join us in this rare opportunity to glimpse the very private world of this extraordinary musical genius.’
Watts died, aged 80, in August 2021 from cancer. His wife Shirley died 16 months later, aged 82, following a short illness.
![All yours: Two scores by Irving Berlin – Songs from Top Hat and Songs from Follow the Fleet,are inscribed to Ginger Rogers](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050141-12283197-image-a-21_1689003042491.jpg)
All yours: Two scores by Irving Berlin – Songs from Top Hat and Songs from Follow the Fleet,are inscribed to Ginger Rogers
![Iconic: First edition copies of F. Scott Fitzgerald's All The Sad Young Men...](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050119-12283197-image-a-29_1689003092376.jpg)
![... and Dashiell Hammett's The Dain Curse are also included in the sale](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050145-12283197-image-a-30_1689003092421.jpg)
Iconic: First edition copies of F. Scott Fitzgerald's All The Sad Young Men and Dashiell Hammett's The Dain Curse are also included in the sale
![Coveted: Two inscribed piano scores by cornetist Leon ‘Bix’ Beiderbecke feature prominently in the collection](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050151-12283197-image-m-32_1689003105629.jpg)
Coveted: Two inscribed piano scores by cornetist Leon ‘Bix’ Beiderbecke feature prominently in the collection
![Landmark novel: A first edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender Is The Night, originally published in 1934 and available among the various items from Charlie Watts' private collection](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050131-12283197-image-m-35_1689003182621.jpg)
Landmark novel: A first edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Tender Is The Night, originally published in 1934 and available among the various items from Charlie Watts' private collection
![Get involved: Part one will take place in London on September 28, while part two will run online from September 15 to 29](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/07/10/16/73050991-12283197-image-a-41_1689003737156.jpg)
Get involved: Part one will take place in London on September 28, while part two will run online from September 15 to 29
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