Three drafts, which show off the director's artistry at various stages of the film's evolution, went under the hammer at the Profiles in History sale in California on Tuesday (29Sep15).

The scripts were estimated to sell for between $20,000 (£12,500) and $30,000 (£18,750) each, but their auction total raised more than expected.

The original rough draft of Citizen Kane, then given the working title American, went for $32,000 (£20,000). It was written in 1940 by Welles' collaborator Herman Mankiewicz and is the earliest known existing draft of the classic movie.

A second draft was snapped up for $25,600 (£16,000), but it was the third and final revised shooting script, which includes handwritten notes from Welles and is signed by most of the cast, which smashed auction estimates at $44,900 (£28,063).

The manuscripts were sold by a close friend of the filmmaker, who passed away in 1985.

The auction lots failed to generate as much interest as Welles' personal copy of the working draft script, which sold for a stunning $164,000 (£102,500) at Sotheby's last year (14).

The 1941 film is considered one of the the greatest pictures ever made by many critics, filmmakers and fans.