AN abandoned steam tractor dating back nearly 100 years is set to sell for up to £70,000 after being discovered in a Colchester garden. 

Colchester-based auctioneers, Reeman Dansie, are set to put the historic machine under auction in November.

The unusual discovery was made during a routine house call to a country cottage while looking for other actionable items.

But to the auction house’s surprise, they stumbled upon a 96-year-old steam tractor in the cottage’s garden located just outside the city.

Auctioneer Lewis Rabett, who spotted the engine under a tarp poking out of the property's overgrown garden, said: “It was a really unexpected find.

“It is certainly the first time I have discovered anything quite like it.”

A spokesman for Reeman Dansie added: “At a house call to a country cottage you may expect to find many things, a Victorian watercolour, a tea set, or perhaps a grandfather clock.

“What you don’t expect to come across however is a 96-year-old steam tractor, languishing under a tarpaulin in the back garden.”

Following the discovery, the Reeman Dansie team set out to find out more about the history of the forgotten engine.

They discovered the steam tractor in question christened Nippy was manufactured by British firm Aveling & Porter in 1926.

Painted in the livery of haulage contractors Dagnall Ltd of Chesham Bois in Buckinghamshire it is likely the engine spent its early life hauling goods around the country.

By the 1920’s internal combustion power began to replace steam power and slowly engines such as Nippy were replaced by the trucks and lorries in the haulage world that we are familiar with today.

In later years the engine was owned by a father and son, before disappearing from the steam scene around 15 years ago.

A spokesman for Reeman Dansie added: “Following Reeman Dansie’s discovery the engine has been collected from the garden it has spent over a decade in ready for it to be sold at auction, where its lucky new owners will be able to restore Nippy back to steaming condition."

Nippy will be going under the hammer as part of Reeman Dansie’s Classic Car and Vehicle sale on Friday, November 11 at 12pm and is estimated to fetch between £50,000 to 70,000.