A collection of books, letters and notes chronicling the friendship between author JRR Tolkien and Eileen Elgar, a profoundly deaf fan, has sold at Sotheby's in London for more than £103,000. The materials, which passed between the two in the 1960s after Elgar wrote to the Oxford-based Lord of the Rings author, more than doubled their pre-sale estimates, underscoring strong current demand among collectors for Tolkien-related items.

The lots dated from 1961 to 1964 and reached a total selling price of £103,680 including seller's premium. Among them, a letter referencing the death of author CS Lewis, sold alongside a signed copy of The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, fetched £20,480. Elgar, who died in 1980, lived near the Hotel Miramar in Bournemouth, where Tolkien and his wife holidayed each year; as she never learned to lip read, the pair communicated using written notes during his visits. Sotheby's specialist Will Passey called the Lewis letter "moving" and a "testament to the strength" of their friendship, adding that these letters had previously been overlooked.