BRISTOL.- UK memorabilia dealer Paul Fraser Collectibles launches the Fidel Castro & Che Guevara Personal Property Collection Auction today, Thursday, May 26.

The online auction, which closes on June 23, stars:

● Fidel Castro’s secret message cigar box with hidden doors, and secret letter. Used by Castro to organise the Cuban revolution while in prison from 1953-1955. Estimate: £100,000+

● Che Guevara’s personal water bottle from the Cuban revolution. Signed by Guevara to avoid contracting malaria through using the wrong bottle. Estimate: £10,000+

● Fidel Castro’s assassination-prevention cigar box. Castro signed the cigar box to mark it as his. Only he and his closest security team members could touch it. This minimised the risk of the CIA planting a bomb or poisoned cigar in the box. Estimate: £30,000+

● 130 original print photos of Fidel Castro, Raul Castro and Che Guevara - many of them never-before-seen. 73 of the original prints were taken by Castro’s personal photographer, Alberto Korda. Estimate: £50,000+

● Fidel Castro signed Cuba flag. Estimate: £15,000+

Paul Fraser, founder of Just Collecting, comments: “The word to sum up this auction is: 'personal'.

"These aren't just pieces Castro and Guevara briefly touched or signed. These items were their personal property. Used by these extraordinary figures of 20th century history on a daily basis.

"And that makes this auction unique.

“I’m expecting huge interest. Because after this auction, there is nothing else of this magnitude set to emerge ever again. If you’re a Cuba collector, this is the auction you’ve been waiting for.”

Superb provenance

The collection was acquired by the present owner at the estate sale of Fidel Castro's mistress Natty Revuelta Clews (1926-2015), between December 2015 and July 2016.

The auction also features:

● Fidel Castro's personal ashtray: Estimate £10,000+
● Fidel Castro's personal machete: Estimate £7,000+
● Fidel Castro and Che Guevara's personal fishing rods: Estimate £10,000+ each
● Che Guevara's personal signed Cuba flag from the Bay of Pigs invasion: Estimate £20,000+
● Che Guevara's personal lighter, bought at Shannon airport, Ireland in 1965: Estimate £4,000+

The auction runs from Thursday May 26 to Thursday June 23, 2022.