Treasures once belonging to Hollywood starlet Vivien Leigh up for sale

Items up for sale include her gold ring marking the actress’s famously passionate relationship with Laurence Olivier.

A scene from the movie Gone with the Wind, starring Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh (MGM/PA Archive/PA Images)

Gone With The Wind star Vivien Leigh’s family are selling 250 treasures once belonging to the actress from Hollywood’s Golden Age.

Jewellery, paintings, couture clothing, books and furniture are among the items which have been passed down through the double Oscar-winner’s family.

Vivien Leigh photograph by Cecil Beaton (Sotheby's Cecil Beaton Studio Archive) — Vivien Leigh photograph by Cecil Beaton (Sotheby’s Cecil Beaton Studio Archive)

Items going under-the-hammer, at Sotheby’s in London, include Leigh’s personal copy of the Gone With The Wind novel, given to her by its author Margaret Mitchell and expected to fetch up to £7,000.

Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier (Sotheby's) — A snap of Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier at their home from a never-seen-before family album (Sotheby’s)

She once said she had been “fascinated by the lovely wayward, tempestuous” Scarlett O’Hara, the character she would go on to play, “from the moment” she read the novel.

Vivien Leigh and co-star Clark Gable in their famous clinch in the 1939 blockbuster Gone With The Wind (Press Association images) — Vivien Leigh and co-star Clark Gable in their famous clinch in the 1939 blockbuster Gone With The Wind (PA)

Mitchell inscribed a poem in the book to the English actress, writing: “Life’s pattern pricked with a scarlet thread / where once we were with a grey / To remind us all how we played our parts / In the shock of an epic day”.

Margaret Michell inscribed Leigh's book with a poem (Sotheby's) — Margaret Mitchell inscribed Leigh’s book with a poem (Sotheby’s)

Also up for sale is Leigh’s gold ring, estimated to fetch £600, marking her famously passionate relationship with actor Laurence Olivier.

A gold ring inscribed Laurence Olvier Vivien Eternal (Sotheby's) — A gold ring inscribed Laurence Olivier Vivien Eternally (Sotheby’s)

The pair met in 1935, while married to other people, and embarked on an affair.

Olivier described the actress as having “an attraction of the most perturbing nature I had ever encountered” while Leigh had predicted before even meeting the actor: “That’s the man I’m going to marry”.

Another lot is a red chalk drawing of Leigh, famed for her beauty, for a painting commissioned by Olivier.

Red chalk portrait of Vivien Leigh from 1942 (Sotheby's) — A red chalk portrait of Leigh from 1942 could fetch £7,000 (Sotheby’s)

Other items up for auction include a silver cigarette box given to Leigh, then a relatively unknown actress, by the man credited with securing her the role of heroine O’Hara.

Property from Leigh’s two homes, Notley Abbey and Durham Cottage, will also be sold, including the porcelain, silver and glassware which Leigh and Olivier used to entertain guests.

Gone With The Wind script given to Leigh by the cast (Sotheby's) — Gone With The Wind script given to Leigh by the cast (Sotheby’s)

Leigh’s pink, full length, evening dress is expected to fetch up to £300 and a diamond bow pendant could reach £35,000.

The diamond bow brooch could fetch up to £35,000 (Sotheby's) — The diamond bow brooch could fetch up to £35,000 (Sotheby’s)

A Gone With The Wind film script, presented to the actress by members of the cast, could sell for more than £3,500.

Leigh's Gone With The Wind screenplay is up for auction (Sotheby's) — Leigh’s Gone With The Wind script is up for auction (Sotheby’s)

“We’re all guilty of…. blurring Vivien’s identity with that of Scarlet O’Hara or Blanche DuBois,” he said.

Pink evening dress (Sotheby's) — Leigh’s pink evening dress could sell for £300 (Sotheby’s)

“Her private collection does not disappoint. Vivien approached the decoration of her homes as if she were designing a set, incorporating influences and inspiration from a life spent on screen and on stage.

“These houses were an extension of the theatrical space, with medieval Notley Abbey looking positively Shakespearean.

John Piper's painting of her home Notley Abbey could fetch £12,000 (Sotheby's) — John Piper’s painting of Leigh’s home Notley Abbey could fetch £12,000 (Sotheby’s)

Leigh died in 1967, aged just 53, in London, after suffering from tuberculosis.

:: The auction will take place at Sotheby’s in London on September 26.