Margaret Cadman, who died last year aged 94, collected a valuable hoard of British and European pottery.

She hid it from burglars by locking it away in cupboards and drawers and covering it in so much paint and wallpaper they would never open.

When experts visited the Victorian house on Brighton's Marine Parade, they found a treasure trove and filled almost 500 packing cases full of ceramics.

A London Delft mug with a portrait of Charles II

Now dealers believe her collection, to be auctioned on 10 and 11 October at the London auction house, and other artefacts from her home, could reach up to �1m.

Mrs Cadman moved to Brighton in the late 1940s and began visiting Harrods and Fortnum & Mason's regularly, taking a basket full of small antiques and collectables to offer the famous stores.

She opened a shop and established a reputation as a collector.

Fifty years

The selection of British ceramics on sale at Christie's, although not all of the pieces, reflects the best of her 50 years of collecting and dealing.

One of the highlights of the sale on 11 October is a rare London Delft mug commemorating Charles II's accession to the throne in 1660.

The four inch high mug is painted with a half-length portrait of the king and is expected to fetch between �40,000 - �60,000.

A third sale of furniture and other artefacts from Mrs Cadman's home will take place on 20 November.