Johnny Depp is set to sell nine Jean-Michel Basquiat paintings.

Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp

The 53-year-old star, who is currently in the midst of a divorce from Amber Heard, is due to auction the nine works from his private collection on June 29 and June 30, a Christie's auction house has confirmed.

The pieces are largely from 1981 and took some 25 years to put together.

The impressive collection of works should earn between £4 million to £6 million, according to the auction house, which also noted that the sale had been planned for months, meaning it is, most likely, completely unrelated to Johnny's split from Amber, 30.

Meanwhile, Amber's friend iO Tillett Wright recently alleged that she was attacked "many times" by the actor before she sought a divorce.

The 'Magic Mike' star's friend called 911 following an explosive row between the couple, but says it wasn't the first time she witnessed the aftermath of Depp's outbursts.

Writing in a blog post, she said: "I called 911 because she never would.

"I was on the phone with both of them and heard it drop, heard him say, 'What if I pulled your hair back?' and her scream for my help, I wondered like so many times before if I should break the code of silence that surrounds celebrities and invite the police into the situation."

Tillett also recalled another incident in December when he allegedly flew off the handle.

She said: "Every time it happened, her first thought was about protecting him... I know this because I went to their house. I saw the pillow with my own eyes. I saw the busted lip and the clumps of hair on the floor."

Johnny has denied all of the accusations made against him.