7 days ago
- Business
- Irish Independent
Vintage car, banknotes and pocket watches: Lifetime collection of former Guinness boss to be auctioned
The collection of Arthur Livingstone (93), a polymath and former head of Guinness Overseas, is to be auctioned by Niall Mullen at Gormleys Auctions.
Sligo man Mr Livingstone has had a lifelong interest in mechanical objects and amassed a collection of curios as well as the knowledge to maintain them.
As a child, he repaired a long-defunct grandmother clock in his family home in Coolaney, making the cords needed out of hemp.
He became renowned for his skill throughout the community, with neighbours bringing him broken objects such as gramophones to fix when he was on school leave.
A local schoolteacher recognised his talent, and encouraged his parents to pursue his education.
Mr Livingstone developed a love of languages, picking up 14 and developing fluency in eight of them.
Among his collection of pocket watches is a Charles Oudin Eleve De Brevete solid silver pocket watch, valued at between €1,000 and €2,000.
The auction also features a large collection of unusual vintage scientific equipment, several antique guns including a boxed pair of duelling pistols, atlases and informational books, over 300 walking sticks, and the furniture from Mr Livingstone's home, Cuiltybar House in Coolaney.
His banknote collection includes three mint first issue Lady Lavery notes, signed and dated from 1928, with the £1 valued between €40-€800, and the £10 valued from €600-€1,000.
Among his vintage and antique vehicles are a Briggs & Stratton Swift Flyer, a motorised cycle car from the early 20th century, valued at €5,000-€10,000, a cherry-red 1984 Citroen 2CV 6 Special with a starting price of €8,000, and a rare right-hand drive bronze 1971 Citroen DS21, valued at between €40,000 and €45,000.
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Mr Livingstone spent all his life working for the Guinness Brewery, becoming managing director of Guinness Overseas when the company expanded abroad in the 60s.
This brought him and his wife Zoe to Nigeria in the early 1960s, and later to Malaysia, Jamaica and Brazil.
Being a compulsive collector of curiosities and artefacts wherever he went, his collection is a reflection of a long and interesting life.
The Livingstone collection can be viewed at Cuiltybar House until tomorrow, June 17.
The online sale will run from 5.30pm tomorrow until Wednesday, June 18.
Mr Livingstone is also selling his house and lands through Sligo agents REA McCarrick & Sons.
