Tunisia sells off Ben Ali's 'ill-gotten gains' – in pictures

Many pieces come from the Ben Ali family's sumptuous palace with a Mediterranean view at nearby Sidi Dhrif Photograph: Tunisian government

Artwork to be included in the sale Photograph: Tunisian government

Ben Ali and his family had a penchant for gilded falcons and swallows in flight Photograph: Tunisian government

The items include 34 luxury cars, semi-armoured Cadillac limousines, BMWs, Mercedes, two Lamborgini Gallardos, Bentleys, Aston Martins and some 300 pieces of jewellery Photograph: Tunisian government

Smaller items will be sold at a fixed price, while anything priced at more than £4,000 will go to the highest bidder Photograph: Tunisian government

The organisers evidently hope to attract not just well-heeled buyers but also members of the public ready to pay the £12 entrance fee to marvel at their former ruler's excesses Photograph: Tunisian government

The Cleopatre exhibition space in Gammarth, a wealthy resort north of Tunis, is being guarded by heavy security before the sale Photograph: Tunisian government

The authorities have emphasised that the £8m they hope to raise from the sale will go towards school buses for rural children and new roads Photograph: Tunisian government

The items came into public hands through the courts after the revolution that sparked the Arab spring two years ago Photograph: Tunisian government

The sale is the most colourful part of a sell-off that includes confiscated shareholdings in a bank, two car importers and a cement plant Photograph: Tunisian government

Ben Ali, his wife Leila Trabelsi and the couple's young son in January begin their third year of exile in Saudi Arabia Photograph: Tunisian government