AN ENTIRE suit of armour was among the treasures plundered at a very unusual sale.

An English Civil War broad sword and a pair of flintlock duelling pistols were also swiped up at the arms and armour auction.

In total, just under £250,000 worth of war antiques were sold by specialist auctioneer Antony Cribb in the sale at Milton Hill House Hotel near Didcot.

Bidders from across the globe fought hard to get their hands on one of the 350 pieces of history on March 14.

Oxford Mail:

Online and telephone bidders from the USA, Europe, China and Dubai battled it out with local and national bidders to win their desired lots.

Among the armoury was a 'fascinating', single-owner collection of 16th and 17th century armour including helmets, breast plates, gauntlets and swords ranging from swept-hilt rapiers to mortuary sword, including those used at the Battle of Newbury in the English Civil War.

The top price paid for a piece of armour was £4,300.

Oxford Mail:

Amongst the other lots was a pair of silver mounted flintlock Queen Anne pistols which sold for £8,400, a cased pair of flintlock duelling pistols which fetched £6,800 and a scarce blue and gilt Georgian Officer’s dirk which made £7,800.

Mr Cribb, who has offices at Harwell Innovation Centre, said despite what some people might think, collecting armour was not the preserve of millionaires in mansions.

The auctioneer, who lives near Didcot and runs the business with his wife Sarah, said: "You could generalise, but you could also put two armour buyers together and be hard pushed to find a connection.

Oxford Mail:

"Some people are rich and some people save up the money, but almost all of them want a piece of history."

To prove the point, about 80 per cent of March's auction came from a single three-bedroom semi-detached house in the north of England.

Mr Cribb, who studied history and warfare at university, set up his business after a major career switch.

Having spent years working in publishing in London, he finally won his dream job as an arms and armour cataloguer for Bonham's in Oxford.

Two years ago he struck out on his own and set up Antony Cribb Ltd with his wife.

Oxford Mail:

The couple now hold three arms and armour auctions every year.

The next one will be at Milton Hill House on Tuesday, June 27.

Already destined for that auction is a scarce Star of India medal group, a selection of Georgian swords and a large collection of headdresses and pistols.

Find out more at antonycribb.com