The weapon, which was nicknamed “sweetheart” by the Prohibition-era gangster will go on sale at Richmond Auctions in South Carolina.

The auction on 18 May will take place less than three years after it sold for just over $1 million (£800,000) at another auction in California. Bidding starts at $500,000 (£400,000), CBS News reports.

The .45 Colt semi-automatic pistol was manufactured in 1911 and became one of Capone’s most prized possessions.