A black velvet dress that belonged to Whitney Houston is to be sold at auction.

A pair of earrings and a vest the singer wore in 1992 movie The Bodyguard will also go under the hammer next month.

Celebrity auctioneer Darren Julien said the pieces and other Houston items became available after the star's death on February 11 and will be included among a long-planned sale of Hollywood memorabilia such as Charlie Chaplin's cane, Clark Gable's jacket from Gone With The Wind and Charlton Heston's staff from The Ten Commandments.

Julien said: "It's a celebration of her life. If you hide these things in fear that you're going to offend someone - her life is to be celebrated. These items are historic now that she passed. They become a part of history. They should be in museums. She's lived a life and had a career that nobody else has ever had."

The singer's floor-length black dress is valued at 1,000 dollars but likely to collect much more. The vest is listed at 400 dollars, and the faux-pearl earrings start at 600 dollars.

Houston fans and other collectors can bid online, by phone or in person during the Hollywood Legends auction on March 31 and April 1. Lots will be shown during a free public exhibition beginning on March 19 at Julien's Auctions in Beverly Hills, California, just blocks from the Beverly Hilton Hotel where Houston died aged 48.