Attention Queenslanders! Sir Joh and Lady Flo Bjelke-Petersen’s estate is up for auction

The estate of Queensland’s longest-serving and arguably most iconic premier, Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen and his equally popular wife and long-time Queensland senator Lady Flo, is up for auction with over 800 items going under the hammer with no reserve.

Bjelke-Petersen remains one of the most controversial leaders in Australian political history, with many crediting him with putting Queensland on the map during his 19 years as the state’s premier – a re-election result he achieved through shameless gerrymandering; that is, moving electoral boundaries to apportion greater value to rural votes than those cast in the city, a move that favoured his Country Party (later the National Party).

Meanwhile, his wife Lady Flo served as senator for 12 years but above all else was known for her beloved pumpkin scones. The couple remained heavily embedded in Queensland politics before settling down with their family who is now orchestrating the auction.

“We have come to the end of the era of Joh and Flo’s partnership in which they achieved so much for both Queensland and Australia during their political careers,” commented the Bjelke-Petersen family. “Therefore as a family we have decided to allow the sale of Dad and Mum’s collection which has been in their home at Bethany for many years. We are sure those who acquire items from this collection will honour and treasure them as much as our whole family has.”

The auction will feature several staples of Bjelke-Petersen’s life that helped him achieve such a high status in the eyes of everyday Queenslanders, including his personal desk and briefcase that he used on a daily basis, as well as hand signed campaign posters and even the 1982 Jaguar Saloon that he once drove.

But most admirers of the political couple will be more interested in nabbing the world-famous pumpkin scone recipe that Lady Flo pulled out for almost every high-stakes international visit. Up for auction is a ceramic spoon inscribed with the iconic recipe.

One of the most sought-after pieces is expected to be the rare 1969 hand signed post-moon landing world tour luncheon schedule that’s signed by the very astronauts who made history that year by taking one giant leap for mankind, namely Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, John Gorton and a range of other dignitaries.

It also features oil paintings of Bjelke-Petersen done by Australian artist and Archibald Prize Winner William Dargie as well as other historical and nautical items, silverware, homewares, glassware, clothing, crockery, art, maps, music, books and many more pieces of Australian history.

“This event is extremely rare, and we feel very privileged to honour and support the Bjelke-Petersen family where they have entrusted us to auction over 800 treasured items each with their own story to tell,” Lee Hames, chief operations officer for the auction company Lloyds Auctions said. “The community really have this once in a lifetime chance to become a custodian of a cherished piece of Australian history and share a story that will be remembered forever.”

Supporters of Bjelke-Petersen point to the impressive infrastructure developments undertaken in Queensland during his reign, which included major dams, a proliferation of mines and power stations and a modernised railway system. Bjelke-Petersen was also a key instigator of Expo 88, which was held in Brisbane and considered a great success.

But the infamous Queensland premier was also frequently accused of operating a police state, as a result of his interference in the appointment of judges and his use of the police force to put down anti-apartheid demonstrations and trade union strikes and to raid hippie communes. He’s also remembered for trying to block the introduction of Medicare by the federal government of the time, and for abolishing death taxes in Queensland, causing an influx of older New South Wales residents across the border to retire in the Sunshine State.

As well as being a staunch conservative and vocal homophobe – Gough Whitlam, who was Australian prime minister during some of Bjelke-Petersen’s reign, reputedly once called him a “Bible-bashing bastard” – the premier wasn’t shy of personal advancement, prospering by approving oil prospecting leases to companies in which he had invested. Even Lady Flo invested in a mining company that dealt directly with the government.

Bjelke-Petersen was eventually brought down by the police corruption he’d allowed to flourish during his leadership – in which bags containing hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash were allegedly delivered to his office –  with the scandalous findings of a a joint investigation by the ABC and The Courier Mail prompting an inquiry that looked into the the payment of bribes to police and “any other persons” who may have engaged with the police in corruption. The inquiry undermined the premier’s authority in his own party and he resigned in December 1987.

In 1991, Bjelke-Petersen was tried for perjury but the jury couldn’t agree on a verdict and a re-trial wasn’t held because the then-81-year-old former premier was considered too old. Bjelke-Petersen died in 2005 at 94 and was buried at Bethany.