Literature lovers have just a few days to help guardians of the Bronte heritage raise cash to bring Bronte treasures back home to Haworth.

Under the hammer tomorrow is a very rare first edition of Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights containing her sister Charlotte’s pencilled-in corrections. It is expected to fetch in the region of £50,000.

And on Thursday, December 17, at Sotheby’s in London, another sale contains an artist’s box and a collection of pencil drawings owned by Emily and a writing desk which belonged to Charlotte, author of Jane Eyre.

Ann Dinsdale, Bronte Parsonage Museum collections manager, has described the auctions as “the sales of the century.”

“These items are of national significance and part of the history of English literature,” she said. “They should be back where they belong at Haworth.”

The auction in New York, from the collection of Hollywood actor-turned-producer William E Self, also includes three lively letters from Charlotte to Henry Nussey, brother of her close friend Ellen. He proposed to Charlotte in 1839 – she turned him down.

Museum staff are desperately trying to raise funds to ensure that the items are returned to a public collection in the UK and not lost to a private collector.

Anyone who wishes to help is urged to contact Mr McCarthy on 01535 642323.