Buyers packed a Sussex auction house to watch the possessions of shamed politician Jonathan Aitken go under the hammer.

More than 35 lots which adorned the former Cabinet minister's home before he was declared bankrupt went up for grabs at Gorringes in Lewes.

One item summed up just how badly Mr Aitken had fallen on hard times - a silver christening mug engraved with his initials and date of birth.

Other treasures included a pair of Chinese porcelain candlesticks, a maple cigar case and a Pakistani prayer rug.

Most of the lots were valued between £100 and £500, with an 18th Century Dutch oil painting expected to fetch the most in the three-day sale with a reserve price of £2,000 to £3,000.

Nicholas Muston, group manager of Gorringes, said the turnout was higher than normal but he believed most people were unaware of which items had once belonged to Mr Aitken.

He said: "It's only really the media that seems to know about it. A sale of his books earlier in the year caused more interest."

Mr Muston said he believed many of Mr Aitken's friends had been buying back the antiques for him.

Until January, the former Tory minister was in Ford Prison, near Arundel, serving time for perjury.

He was forced into bankruptcy after a failed libel action against The Guardian and Granada Television's World in Action programme in 1997 left him with costs of £2.2 million and an 18-month prison sentence.

Since then, his wife has divorced him and Mr Aitken is taking a theology degree.

Snapping up five of the lots, including a pair of 19th Century Paris-style vases, was Texan antique dealer Terence Burkett.

He said: "I knew there were some things in the sale belonging to Jonathan Aitken. When the stuff I've bought is shipped over I'll sort through it and make sure people know its history.

"I'm sure there will be people out there who are interested in its past. He sounds like a colourful character."