Jeffrey Archer has been burgled at home in his 17th century mansion, with thieves taking precious bronze sculptures.
The celebrated novelist and his wife were sleeping in their historic Cambridgeshire home when the burglars broke in this week.
They stole four bronze sculptures worth tens of thousands of pounds from his garden. The best-selling writer had been planning to donate the artworks to the Tate after his death.
Lord Archer said he had been told there was very little chance of getting the sculptures back – as the criminals are likely to have destroyed them.
"The saddest thing is that, according to the police, the thieves will almost certainly melt down the sculptures and the bronze will be worth just a few hundred pounds," he told the Mail.
"The sculptures are a real loss to the nation. One of them was Oceanides, by Maurice Lambert.
"Sir Nicholas Serota, when he was director of the Tate Gallery, told me that it was a very important piece, so I had left it in my will to the Tate, so that it could be enjoyed by thousands of people after my death.
"Sadly, that won’t happen now."
The burglary took place at the Old Vicarage in Grantchester, where Lord Archer has lived with his wife, Dame Mary since 1979.
The historic home, near Cambridge, is closely associated with the First World War poet Rupert Brooke, who lived there at one stage.
Lord Archer said the police had been "very good" and came out "immediately".
But he added: "The gang clearly knew what they were doing.
"They had the professional equipment to remove the sculptures."
Lord Archer's back garden has previously been burgled. In 2007 another bronze statue, also worth tens of thousands of pounds, was taken by thieves.
