Auctions: Maxwell, Montgomery and male memorabilia

ONLY Sotheby's sale of the late Robert Maxwell's effects breaks the off-season calm of the big London auction houses. The 600 lots taken from the Maxwell home, Headington Hill Hall, Oxford, are expected to raise more than pounds 300,000 in New Bond Street on Thursday (10.30am). His military cross medal, lotted with others, is estimated pounds 1,500- pounds 2,000. A photograph of Field Marshal Montgomery bestowing it upon him is est pounds 150- pounds 200. The Maxwell gold Parker fountain pen is estimated pounds 180- pounds 220.

Bonhams Knightsbridge has marine pictures and artworks, Thursday (11am). Bloomsbury Book Auctions on Thursday (1pm) features 35 works by Robert Louis Stevenson, including a copy of his first book, The Pentland Rising, which his father had printed for him; estimated pounds 750- pounds 1,000.

Bonhams Chelsea offers on Wednesday English and continental pictures (11am) and modern decorative arts (2pm). Watercolours and drawings are on Thursday (2pm). Christie's South Kensington has decorative objects, carpets, furniture on Wednesday (10.30am) and watercolours and drawings (2pm). Thursday: cameras and optical toys (10.30am), Oriental artworks (also 10.30am) and ceramics (2pm). The camera sale has a Nikon S3M with motordrive, one of only 195 made in 1960, est pounds 12,000- pounds 18,000. Also a JWB hand-cranked panorama theatre est pounds 450- pounds 600.

At Phillips Bayswater Modern British and Irish pictures on Tuesday (11am) with liquidation stock from David Messum. A picture sale at 12 noon on the same day is followed by old and new jewellery (1.30pm). On Friday (11am), old and new silver.