A MANUSCRIPT signed by Sir Edward Elgar went under the hammer for a record-breaking £57,600 - smashing all previous sales for the composer's work.

The full score of Salut d'Amour reached four times its estimated price of £15,000 after a frantic spell of bidding between just two people at Sotheby's yesterday afternoon.

The rarity of obtaining a full orchestral score by Elgar, who was born in Lower Broadheath, near Worcester, was seen as a principal reason for the high price.

"With more of Elgar's material disappearing into libraries and into private collections it becomes just that little bit harder to obtain one of his orchestral scores," said Dr Stephen Roe, head of the book department at Sotheby's.

"There were just two people determined to get the score and when you get that situation anything can happen."

The high figure scuppered the purchase plans of the Elgar Birthplace Museum in Lower Broadheath.

"I think we'll have to class this as the one that got away," said Michael Messenger, chairman of the museum's committee.

"Hopefully, this higher price will be a one-off, because it might be harder to add to our collection in the future."

The museum was successful in a £5,400 bid to secure eight unpublished letters written by Elgar to writer and critic Rosa Newmarch - its estimated price was £4,000. It already has the letters of correspondence from Newmarch to Elgar.

The Salut d'Amour manuscript, which has numerous revisions and alterations, was published in 1889. It is stamped "Edward Elgar, Worcester", signed "Ed. Elgar" and dated July 1888.

Previous prices for Elgar's work include £20,000, paid for his Severn Suite and £15,000 for the violin and piano score of Salut d'Amour.