The only extant autograph manuscript of William Walton’s 1931 work Belshazzar’s Feast is to be put on sale by rare books and manuscript specialists Dominic Winter Auctioneers in Cirencester. A public auction will take place on January 28, with an estimated sale price of £20,000 to £30,000.

The score is a ‘working copy’, having been used during the 1930s and 1940s as a hire copy. It has heavy blue and red pencil markings which, according to the auctioneers, are probably in the hand of Malcolm Sargent who conducted the performance, and many additions and amendments in the composer’s hand providing an authoritative representation of Walton’s intentions.

Belshazzar’s Feast depicts the downfall of the last neo-Babylonian king, Belshazzar, whose story was lifted from the bible for this piece by Osbert Sitwell. First performed at the Leeds Festival on October 8, 1931 – conducted by Malcolm Sargent with baritone Dennis Noble, the London Symphony Orchestra, and the Leeds Festival Chorus – the cantata became Walton’s most iconic and celebrated master work.

Director of Dominic Winter Auctioneers Chris Albury said: ‘This is a unique moment for any admirer of Walton’s music… Belshazzar’s Feast is a cornerstone of British choral literature, and access to a full score of this quality is exceedingly rare. We anticipate strong interest from institutions and individuals who recognise both its musical brilliance and its cultural importance.’

The sale will also feature original manuscript scores of composers Charles Griffes, Henry Gadsby and Max Vogrich, as well as two miniature scores signed by Edward Elgar, and an rare first edition of an important treatise on the baroque guitar by the Sicilian guitarist and priest Don Antonino di Micheli, published in Palermo in 1680. The full catalogue will be available online January 16.

The auction of Belshazzar’s Feast will take place on January 28, 2026.