SUMMER fever struck in the saleroom when a rare big game trophy was sold for a world-record price.

The stuffed head of a rare white rhino had been estimated to fetch up to £6,000 when it went under the hammer at auctioneers Tennants, in Leyburn, North Yorkshire.

But after some competitive bidding by collectors it finally sold for £24,000 - well over the previous world-record price of £17,000.

And another stuffed trophy, of a black rhino head, also beat the old world record, selling for £18,000 - smashing its upper estimate of £5,000.

Both trophies pre-dated 1947 so were not affected by the strict legislation that bans the sale of products from the species, which is regarded as highly endangered.

Tennants' spokesman Adam Schoon said: "We had a number of millionaire industrialists wanting them for their billiard rooms and various die-hard taxidermy collectors here.

"We thought the head might fetch a good price, but the bidding blasted through the old world record."

The heads were owned by a collector from Cheshire who also sold two lion head trophies, one of which easily beat its upper estimate of £1,000 by going for £5,500.

And a moose head sold on behalf of a German client also trounced its upper estimate of £1,500 by fetching £5,500.

"We admit to being cautious in our estimates, but we're very happy with the way the bidding went," said Mr Schoon.

"It seems there was some summer fever about - maybe because of all the rain we've had to put up with recently."

The big game trophies were among hundreds of lots that went under the hammer at the auction house's two-day summer sale. In total, the sale fetched £1.3m - a third more than the auction house had been hoping for.

Other highlights included a collection of Parian pottery, which went for £57,000, a 19th Century painting by Swiss artist Johann Rudolf Weiss, which sold for £42,000, and a 1760 ship's automaton longcase clock, which went for £8,000.

In the furniture section, an 18th Century Chinese lacquer dressing table sold for £9,000.