Items including paintings by Dundee artist Alberto Morrocco and a rare first edition Oor Wullie annual go under the hammer in Edinburgh next month.
The lots are part of the yearly Bonhams Scottish Sale, which takes place at the Queen Street saleroom between August 17 and August 20.
Other lots to be auctioned include Christmas gifts from Queen Victoria to John Brown, paintings by the Scottish Colourists and a bottle of whisky salvaged from the “Whisky Galore” ship SS Politician.
Born in Aberdeen, Alberto Morrocco joined the city’s Gray’s School of Art at the age of 14.
In 1950, after being demobbed from the second world war, he was appointed head of painting at Dundee’s Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, holding the post until 1983.
He exhibited regularly and his work is in public and private collections throughout Britain. He died in Dundee in 1998.
Works of his going under the hammer include The Harbour, Aberdeen, which is expected to fetch up to £30,000; Two Figures on a Beach; Girl with Caged Bird; Afternoon at Fondachello and Still Life with Fruit and Sunflower.
The Oor Wullie annual, which dates from 1940, is estimated to attract bids in the region of £800 to £1200. It is described as “very scarce” and has childish pencil drawings inside.
DC Thomson comics editor Morris Heggie said annuals from this time were particularly rare because people were encouraged to save and recycle paper as part of the war effort.
He said, “It’s one of these things, it’s rare because it’s so old. These books were not meant to last and, during the war, all the children were encouraged to recycle their comics.”
Malcolm Phillips, director of Comic Book Auctions Ltd, has been selling comics and annuals for almost 20 years and has encountered thousands of DC Thomson titles.
He said, “Oor Wullie is the little boy that we all want to be or that we wish we still were. He’s Scotland’s softer version of Dennis the Menace and he was drawn by Dudley D Watkins, Scotland’s greatest artist.
“He drew The Broons, Desperate Dan and various other characters including Biffo the Bear and Lord Snooty. Anything by the artist is collectible.”
Mr Phillips added that the much sought-after annuals were originally “bi-annuals” of the weekly adventures that appeared in the Sunday Post, with a Broons publication coming out every other year.
Comic Book Auctions Ltd is due to auction two original Oor Wullie artworks by Dudley D Watkins in September that date from 1944 and 1964.