PART of a massive antique collection built up by a veteran Worcestershire dealer is being auctioned in a two-day sale in Cheltenham.

Peter Keil died in a road accident last November outside his home in Broadway. Now much of the stock of his famous antiques business is to go under the hammer.

The auction - the first to be conducted by Sotheby's in the town - starts today. The 900 lots are expected to fetch at least a million pounds.

Mr Keil, of High Street, Broadway, was walking near his home when the accident happened.

He was taken to Cheltenham General Hospital but died as a result of severe spinal and chest injuries.

Mr Keil had run the family business, H J Keil Antique Dealers, at shops in Cheltenham and Broadway.

The firm was started by his father, Bill, in 1932, and Peter later took it over.

Many of the items being sold were collected by Bill, a world-respected figure in the antiques and furniture world.

"One of the qualities that Peter Keil shared with his father was his love of the furniture and objects in his stock, continuing to run the business in a somewhat old-fashioned way that was a most refreshing oasis in this modern commercial world," said Simon Redburn, Sotheby's English furniture specialist.