=== modified file 'sql/sql_base.cc'
--- sql/sql_base.cc	2011-04-12 10:59:59 +0000
+++ sql/sql_base.cc	2011-06-10 20:11:52 +0000
@@ -6975,6 +6975,28 @@
         *counter= i;
         *resolution= RESOLVED_IGNORING_ALIAS;
         break;
+      } 
+      else if (find->type() == Item::FUNC_ITEM && ((Item_func*) find)->functype() == Item_func::COLLATE_FUNC && ((Item_func*) find)->arg_count == 2) 
+      {
+        /*
+          If someone uses "ORDER BY column_name COLLATE utf8_spanish_ci", it is a function
+          that we are trying to find, and not a real column.  Bug #59449 exposes that this
+          failed when column_name is actually referring to the name of an alias, whether 
+          that alias is for a real column or for a function result (such as coalesce). This
+          block of code finds the real item, which is the "column" referred to by the 
+          collation function for this scenario.
+        */
+        Item *collated_column = ((Item_func*) find)->arguments()[0];
+        int is_alias = item->type() == Item::FUNC_ITEM ||
+                       ((item->type() == Item::FIELD_ITEM || item->type() == Item::REF_ITEM) &&
+                        my_strcasecmp(system_charset_info, ((Item_ident*) item)->field_name, item->name));
+        if (is_alias && collated_column->name && item->name && !my_strcasecmp(system_charset_info, item->name, collated_column->name))
+        {
+          found = &collated_column;
+          *counter = i;
+          *resolution = RESOLVED_BEHIND_ALIAS;
+          break;
+        }
       }
     }
     else if (table_name && item->type() == Item::REF_ITEM &&