THEY were designed to lure visitors to coastal resorts such as Scarborough and Filey during the heyday of the railways.

The iconic railway posters, mostly from the 1920s and 1930s, depict an idyllic vision of classic tourist destinations across Britain, with golden sands, elegant visitors and endless sunshine.

Now some are going under the hammer at an auction in New York next Tuesday, with the total collection of 200 'rare and important travel posters' from around the world expected to raise as much as £420,000.

Swann Auction Galleries says on its website: "Promising to be one of the most diverse and visually stimulating travel poster auctions ever held at Swann, highlights of this sale include posters from a private Australian collection and masterful British Rail posters."

One LNER poster, dating back to 1930 and headed "The Yorkshire Coast... for happy holidays", shows bathers in the bulky swimming costumes of the era, a golfer, a cricketer, boats and a seagull. Another poster shows a couple on the cliffs above Scarborough, enjoying a picnic.

A third, headed "Bridlington...it's quicker by rail", from 1938, shows a smiling couple sitting on the promenade wall above a golden beach and blue seas.

Another poster, from 1925, is headed "Filey - for the family", and shows a couple with their young child on a beach.