A Kildare man's treasure trove of horseracing items goes on sale

A veritable treasure trove of items of interest from the world of horse racing  will go up for sale in an unusual auction.

The extensive collection of memorabilia was owned by the late Naas resident and horseracing enthusiast/historian Nick O’Toole.

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Mr O’Toole, who died on September 8 following a brief illness, collected the items over a long period.

The NickO’Toole Collection, as  it’s known, chronicles over half a century of the sport's history and it’s set to go under the hammer on  Saturday, November 22, (from 10 am)  at Sean Eacrett Auctions.

“It brings together a lifetime of pictures, racecards, and memorabilia lovingly assembled by Nick,  a man widely admired throughout the racing world for his encyclopaedic knowledge and devotion to the sport,” said Mr Eacrett.

“Nick’s passion began as a boy in 1966 when he watched Arkle win his final race at Leopardstown, keeping the racecard from that day — the first of thousands of cherished items he would gather. Over five decades, his ‘hopeless obsession’, as he fondly called it, grew into one of the most significant private collections of racing memorabilia in Ireland.”

The auction will feature rare photographs, signed silks, racecards and artefacts linked to some of racing’s greatest names, including Arkle, Nijinsky, Vincent O’Brien, Lester Piggott and Mick Kinane.

The collection was the cornerstone of major exhibitions at the Curragh Racecourse and contributed to the acclaimed documentary Arkle – The Legend Lives On for TG4 and Channel 4.

For more information and to register visit www.seaneacrettauctions.ie