Letters written by the late Sir Edmund Hillary have sold at auction in Auckland this morning.
They were purchased by the Auckland War Memorial Museum.
The eight letters penned by the mountaineer fetched $62,000 at a full auction room at Cordy's Auction house.
One of the eight letters was penned on the eve of Sir Ed's historic ascent of Mt Everest on 29 May, 1953. The letter requests that "in the unfortunate business of anything going wrong ... that Mother should be looked after."
The museum's Director of Collections and Research, David Reeves, says the letters provide an important insight into Sir Ed's life and his thinking at critical times of his life.
The museum's Director of Collections and Research, David Reeves, says the letters won't be on display immediately but will be looked after.
Mr Reeves says the letters will not be displayed immediately and will be stored appropriately in the museum's Archive.
A necklace mounted with a stone from the summit of Everest is also for sale.
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