Marie Antoinette's mirror 'hung in loo since 1975'

Marie Antoinette was guillotined during the French Revolution

A mirror once owned by the last queen of France, Marie Antoinette, is to be sold at auction in Bristol after hanging in a bathroom since 1975.

The owner, from North Ferriby, near Hull, inherited the mirror but had "nowhere else to put it," according to Andy Stowe from East Bristol Auctions.

"They hadn't thought it was worth anything," Mr Stowe said.

The mirror could make up to £20,000 when its sold at auction on 13 November.

Its provenance has been proven after it was discovered in a Christie's auction catalogue of Napoleon III's possessions from 1889.

Napoleon's wife, Empress Eugénie, had a keen interest in Marie Antoinette and purchased many items belonging to the former queen, which were later sold off.

The mirror's frame is a later addition from the 1840s

It was inherited by the current owner after being gifted to his grandmother by a friend and when she died it was hung in his downstairs toilet.

The mirror measures 50 x 40cm and is thought to have been part of a larger display in one of Antoinette's palaces.

"Although the mirror had a plaque on it, the owner thought it was a bit of fun, and probably not true," Mr Stowe said.

"It was in their family for so long they just didn't notice, and they were brushing their teeth in it, much like Marie Antoinette probably was."