By Jonathan Sibun
Last Updated: 12:32am GMT 22/12/2007
The three day auction of the contents of the Savoy, the iconic London hotel, raised more than twice the pre-sale estimate this week as buyers ignored the doom and gloom pervading the high street to spend more than £1.8m.
Famous faces from the world of film and music gathered with former hotel guests, interior designers, hoteliers and other private individuals to bid on more than 3,000 lots of furniture, artwork and kitchenware.
A woman stands next to a pile of chairs up for auction at the Savoy hotel
Everything must go: Buyers bid for everything from chairs to pianos to ash-trays at the Savoy auction
A grand piano at which Frank Sinatra once played raised £11,400 against an estimate of £2000-£3000 while the dancefloor on which Marlene Dietrich and Maurice Chevalier [...]