The sale included many concert posters

But a spokeswoman for Mick Fleetwood's memorabilia company Fleetwood Owen - declared the sale a success.

She said a Concorde lifejacket given to the late Kurt Cobain by his wife Hole singer Courtney Love, fetched $2,055 (£1,400).

Handwritten lyrics by Jim Morrison of The Doors exceeded their reserve price of $7,335 (£5,000), fetching $11,440.

But Presley's intimate details with a reserve price of $29,330 (£20,000) did not attract a buyer.

Lennon wrote to a fan at his old school in 1967

Nor did a sequin-covered stretch mini used by the Spice Girls at the 1998 Brit Awards, which was expected to fetch $17,600 (£12,000).

Interest in The Beatles items was at least as high as expected.

A hat belonging to John Lennon went for $2,495 (£1,700) while a 12-page tour programme of the group in 1964 went for $280 (£190).

On Thursday Sotheby's is to auction a collection of Sex Pistols memorabilia - 25 years exactly after the historic "Punk Rock Special" concert at London's 100 Club.

The collection belongs to Helen Wellington-Lloyd, a friend of the band's one-time manager Malcolm McLaren.

A flyer for the 100 Club concert is expected to fetch £600 to £800.

Rotten's shirt was typical of the Sex Pistols' look

Sex Pistols singer Johnny Rotten's customised "Anarchy" shirt has been priced at £2,000 to £3,000, while a copy of the band's withdrawn single God Save The Queen on A&M Records is estimated at £1,800 to £2,200.

A Sotheby's spokesman told BBC News Online: "Historically we've sold very little punk or Pistols' material - but the response to this has been very positive."

Sotheby's is also auctioning some Beatles memorabilia, including a two-page letter written by John Lennon to a fan in 1967 which is expected to fetch £20,000 to £25,000.

Lennon's suede jacket from 1963 is estimated at £25,000 to £30,000.

Other pop artists represented in the Sotheby's sale include Madonna, and Jimi Hendrix.