Callas belongings to be auctioned

The soprano died 30 years ago this week, on 16 September 1977

An auction of memorabilia belonging to the late opera legend Maria Callas is to be held in Milan in December, Sotheby's has announced.

The collection includes love letters, musical scores and gowns, along with photographs of her with dignitaries such as ex-US President John F Kennedy.

The items are from the estate of Giovanni Battista Meneghini, to whom Callas was married for 10 years.

She left him in 1959 for Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis.

Callas, who was born in New York, established her career in Italy before returning to the United States.

Regularly acknowledged as the first and original diva, she died 30 years ago this week, having suffered a heart attack.

The collection will go on display in Milan between 7 and 11 December.

Diamond ring

The last sale of the star's belongings involved a selection of her jewellery, which was offered in the Swiss city of Geneva in 2004.

The 11 pieces raised for three times their estimated value, having been put up for auction by an unnamed heir who had held on to the items since the soprano's death.

The most expensive lot in the auction, which took place at Sotheby's in Geneva, was an 11.7-carat diamond ring.

Known as La Divina, it fetched $397,500 (£196,000), nearly five times the original estimate set by auctioneers.