An auction house in Nijmegen has sold the household furnishings and belongings of Pim Fortuyn. The auction house had build exact replicas of the rooms in the late politician's house, Palazzo di Pietro, in Rotterdam.

The turnout to the viewings was low, but thousands of people looked at the articles for sale on the internet catalogue. No less than 900 articles are up for sale. They include furniture, books, paintings, bedroom slippers and even the stub of Fortuyn's last cigarette.

Pim Fortuyn was shot dead 7 years ago, just days before the Dutch parliamentary elections in May 2002. His party, Pim Fortuyn's List (LPF), entered parliament for the first time with 26 seats and joined the coalition government. But the cabinet fell in 2003 due to internal rows within the LPF. In 2008, the LPF was dissolved after losing all its parliamentary seats in 2006.

Pim Fortuyn's property has been put up for sale because the current owners of his house were unable to cover the costs of the building. Members of a group who tried to prevent the auction going ahead were refused entry to the sale.
 

Photo: Flickr Jensje Over Quoted