A set of four scarves owned by George Orwell while fighting in the Spanish civil war are expected to sell for between ?�800-1,200 ($1,278-1,917) at Dreweatts & Bloomsbury Auctions in London on October 3.
The lot includes the scarf he was wearing when he was shot in the neck by a sniper.
The scarves are decorated with anti-fascist slogans and artwork, and feature strong provenance. One scarf is marked with a small hole and bloodstains, and is confirmed to have been worn by the author at Huesca in 1937, where he received his wound.
 The scarves were worn by Orwell while fighting in the Spanish civil war |
The scarves were given to the father of the consignor by the field doctor who treated Orwell following the shooting.
Orwell described the event in his book, Homage to Catalonia: "I had been about ten days at the front when it happened. The whole experience of being hit by a bullet is very interesting.
"Suddenly, in the very middle of saying something, I felt--it is very hard to describe what I felt, though I remember it with the utmost vividness. Roughly speaking it was the sensation of being at the center of an explosion.
"Webb, our stretcher-bearer, had brought a bandage and one of the little bottles of alcohol they gave us for field-dressings. The doctor re-bandaged the wound, gave me a shot of morphine, and sent me off to Sietamo."
Other notable lots at the auction include a rare first edition of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice valued at ?�20,000-25,000 ($31,964-39,955) and a copy of the Cologne Chronicles with an estimate of ?�12,000-18,000 ($19,178-28,767).
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