WHEN was the last time you cleared out your loft?

You might want to have another look after two historic items found gathering dust in Southend sold for a combined £31,500 at auction.

Two separate sellers had a bumper payday at Stacey’s Auctioneers, in Rayleigh, after unexpected bidding wars broke out.

First up was a metre tall pine figurehead of Lord Nelson dating from about 1790, when the vice admiral was at the height of his nautical fame.

Auctioneer Mark Stacey said he initially valued the piece at £800 to £1,200, but it went on to sell for a whopping £13,500.

He said: “It was in the same family for generations and had gone from loft to loft, until a family in Leigh decided to sell it. The family lore was that it had been carved from wood from Nelson’s ship, but it was originally from a shop display.

“It would have been a high end shop selling marine items, like telescopes and compasses. Most of these shops in the Georgian period would have been in London.”

Mr Stacey said only a handful of people could have carved the “superior” piece, made from a single piece of pine. He added: “It’s a very good, highly detailed carved model of Nelson. We had five interested parties over the phone and it eventually went to a collector from Scotland.”

The second item was a rare blue and white porcelain pint mug, dated from 1757. It was found among the possessions of a deceased person’s estate, where it had been in a cupboard for decades.

The mug was decorated with a family crest and figures holding gardening equipment. It was estimated to fetch up to £600, but ended up selling for £18,000.

Mr Stacey said: “There was quite a lot of interest, online and on the phone. It ended up going to a collector in London.

“As soon as I saw it, I knew it was something special. It just goes to show it’s always worth seeing what you’ve got stored away.”