Former Nelson Boys' College pupils fought a bidding war yesterday to ensure two historic portraits of eminent alumni remained at the school.
Headmaster Gary O'Shea said the college had been forced to auction portraits of Nobel prize winner Lord Rutherford and Victoria Cross winner L H Trent, and other memorabilia in order to boost their budget and pay for essential repairs at the 152-year-old college.
However, the Rutherford and Trent works will again be hung on college walls after Nelson resident Doug McKee won a frantic phone bidding war with an anonymous old boy to secure them.
Mr McKee, who represented a conglomerate of former pupils and one generous parent, put up most of the cash, paying $44,000 for the portraits when they went under the hammer at a Dunbar Sloane auction in Wellington last night.
Now owned by the college's old boys' association, the paintings will be fully restored and hung on the walls of the school's war memorial building.
"They could just never leave, the Rutherford especially. They are a live part of the college," Mr McKee told The Dominion Post.
The sale of 180 historic books has already fetched $60,000 and last night's auction of 15 paintings brought in another $143,000, just exceeding the college's fundraising target of $200,000.
Mr O'Shea has said the tough decision to auction the items was made to pay for school building upkeep and "allow us to offer the highest quality education".
