The couple's relationship was reportedly on the rocks

Less than two weeks after calling off their wedding, they turned up at a courthouse in Savannah, Georgia.

But rather than getting a new marriage licence, they merely thanked officials for helping them. Affleck also applied for a gun licence.

Their wedding had been due to take place in California on 14 September.

They had shocked their legions of fans by announcing just days before their wedding that they were calling it off because of a "media frenzy".

As the couple had flown off to separate US cities instead of exchanging vows, anonymous sources quoted by several news agencies said their relationship was on the rocks.

Affleck and Lopez called off their wedding this month

However, after a week of separation, they met at Affleck's new $7.1m (�4.3m) estate on Hampton Island near Savannah at the weekend.

Savannah court clerk Brooke Moran told CBS television: "Ben Affleck said he was looking to hunt some this season, that he purchased two guns last week... and was purchasing his shotgun permit at the court today."

The New York Daily News said the Federal Aviation Administration had imposed a no-fly zone over the property from Saturday morning to Sunday morning for reasons of "public safety or security."

After earlier trying to flee reporters, they appeared on Tuesday at the courthouse and posed for photographs with officials and signed autographs for fans.

The couple's 21-month-old love story is arguably Hollywood's most closely-watched union since that of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in the 1960s.

The couple had become friendly in December 2001, on the set of their movie Gigli, which proved to be a box-office flop.